


Life In the Fast Lane

by Livelongandfangirling



Category: Formula 1 RPF
Genre: F/M, Sort of AU, occasional strong language, tags will be updated as this progresses, too much slow burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-05
Updated: 2017-10-08
Packaged: 2018-01-07 14:55:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 68
Words: 144,928
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1121187
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Livelongandfangirling/pseuds/Livelongandfangirling
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Formula 1 hasn't seen a woman compete in the sport for over twenty years, in 2013 however that changes...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Meeting

_10 th January 2013 – Woking_

_Just breathe for goodness sake!_ Seanagh sighed, pacing up and down her hotel room for the tenth time this morning. The nerves were kicking in now; last night when she arrived at the hotel she was filled with excitement but now she was filled with dread. _What if I fall flat on my face? What if I forget how to drive a car? What if this is all some joke and someone else is on the team? What if..._ She stopped pacing and sat down on the bed and breathed deeply, she needed to calm down. After a few short minutes her phone rang, groaning at the sound of her ringtone Seanagh picked up the phone from the bedside table and answered it.

“Hello” She tried to sound like she wasn’t in the middle of a nervous breakdown.

“Hey sorry I’m late calling, I had a few too many last night” Seanagh shook her head disapprovingly, _Raven_.

“Raven if I come back and find that flat trashed then...”

“Relax; it was just me and your mum. We were celebrating” Raven chuckled; Seanagh was in no mood for this.

“Fine, just don’t trash the place. I have enough on my plate as it is. When I get back I will want to come home to a _clean_ and _tidy_ flat. Got it?”

“Ugh yes _mum_. So have you left yet?” Raven asked

“No I’m still at the hotel. A car’s picking me up in 15 minutes, and I’m dying from nerves!” She exclaimed, beginning to hyperventilate.

“Right listen to me, chill out for a bit and remember to breathe. You have an opportunity people most people would kill to have” Seanagh nodded, Raven can always talk sense into anyone. “Yeah, and remember walk in with your head held high like you own the place and they’ll love you. Oh and talk lots of driving stuff, they’ll love it”

“Thanks Raven. I’ll call you later once it’s all over” Seanagh smiled.

“Good and tell me what Jenson’s like, everyone says he’s gorgeous” _Typical Raven._ Seanagh chuckled at that thought.

“I will, and I’m sure there’s more to him than his dashing good looks”

“Whatever, bye” Raven hung up and Seanagh was filled with confidence. She stood up and adjusted her shirt and stared at her reflection in the mirror. To see herself in the team uniform was like a dream. But this was no dream, as of today she was Seanagh Palmer, Formula One Driver for Vodafone McLaren Mercedes.

 *  *  *

Just a few miles away at the McLaren technology centre, Jenson was feeling a tad less nervous. Happily drinking his second cup of coffee whilst breathing in the cold January air, with his spare hand he pulled the collar of his fleece up so it almost covered half of his face. _It’s too cold._ He thought as his breath made small white clouds a few centimetres from his face and with another shiver he retreated inside. Once he was in the warmth of the building he unzipped his fleece and discarded his empty coffee cup, placed his hands in his pockets and wondered over to the McLaren world Champions gallery. It was a long hallway with pictures of all the McLaren world champions on both walls. Hunt, Senna, Prost, they were all there. And right at the end was Jenson’s now former team mate Lewis Hamilton. Jenson was gutted when Lewis said he was leaving to go to Mercedes, they both got on like a house on fire. But they were still talking so it wasn’t like they weren’t going to be friends any more. Jenson sighed as he caught his reflection in the glass of Lewis’ picture, here he was; about to turn thirty three, finished fifth in the drivers’ championship last season with a world championship and fifteen race wins under his belt. He should feel great. _But I don’t._

“Reliving old times, eh Jenson” He turned around and saw Gary – one of the reserve drivers – approach him.

“Who’s to say they’re old times” He chuckled.

“So, is the new driver coming in today?” He asked, clapping Jenson on the shoulder.

“Uh yeah, she’s coming in today. First official meeting on the team and all that” Jenson was surprised that he was only meeting his team mate now; it was a late signing from what he heard.

“She _...?_ ” Gary asked, looking at Jenson slightly surprised. Jenson wasn’t shocked at his reaction since there hadn’t been a female F1 driver since 1992.

“Yeah, former F3” Jenson replied. He was nervous about today, meeting a new team member is always challenging. Especially since there was a lot of talk, the first female driver in twenty one years. He actually felt sorry for her, all that pressure on her shoulders. “I best get going, sponsor meeting in ten minutes”

“Let’s just hope she’s not tardy eh?” They both laughed as they went in the opposite direction. Jenson had been reassured that this new driver (who he nothing about other than the fact she was a woman) was very capable of making her way round a circuit, and that she was pretty good at it too. Jenson sat down in the meeting room as another cup of coffee was placed in front of him, all the big sponsors (or ‘the suits’ as everyone on the team called them) where there to get a feel of the new driver. Jenson greeted them all with smiles and handshakes; he was brought up with manners after all.

 *  *  *

“Here we are ma’am. I’ll get the door for you” The chauffeur killed the engine right outside the main door. _This place is huge._  Seanagh stepped out of the car and took it all in, the building only a few stories high but it went out for a good few thousand metres. “We best go in, it’s quite chilly” She following him into the building and it was as grand on the inside as it was on the outside; white walls and dark grey floors, even floor-to-ceiling windows in the majority of places. “Just make your way over to the reception desk, they should be expecting you”

“Thanks, and cheers for driving me here” She smiled at him warmly and shook his hand.

“Not a problem ma’am. Have a good day now” The chauffeur smiled and left, leaving Seanagh standing alone feeling like an idiot. _Be confident Seanagh, be confident._ She walked up to the reception desk and noticed on the clock that she was five minutes early.

“Excuse me” She said attempting to grab the attention of the male receptionist. He turned round and smiled brightly at her.

“How may I help you?” He asked. _Oh boy, let’s hope he doesn’t laugh._

“Um, I’m here to see Martin Whitmarsh for...”

“Oh you’re the new driver!” He said, a little excitement underlying his professional tone

“Yes, that’s correct” She replied, adding in a small smile for good measure.

“Right I’ll call him, let him know you’re here” Seanagh stayed put, afraid to have a look around. She was so nervous her feet almost refused to move. “Good morning Mr Whitmarsh, I’m sorry what’s your name?” He asked, tilting the phone away from his face

“Palmer, Seanagh Palmer”

“Seanagh Palmer is here to see you... yes... good I’ll send her up straight away” He put the phone down and called over to a man called Jeff, he must have been a security guard by the look of him; tall, very well built, constant stern facial expression. “You’ve to take Miss Palmer to the main meeting room on the top floor. Oh and here’s your security clearance card and ID” He handed her a lanyard with and ID card and a grey plastic security card.

“Follow me ma’am” _What is it with people calling me ma’am today?_

 *  *  *

Jenson looked around nervously; the only empty seat at the table was the one next to him – his team mate’s. He looked at his watch, the meeting didn’t officially start for another five minutes but it’s always good to be early, it makes a good impression. Just then the door opened and Jenson’s new team mate walked in. She smiled and apologized for her tardiness, snow on the road she said. Jenson stood up to greet her, fiddling with his hair and shirt in a last pitch attempt to look decent. Maybe _I should have shaved this morning._

“Hi nice to meet you, I’m Jenson” He smiled extending his hand, trying not to be too charming. He didn’t want to give her the wrong idea.

“Hi, I’m Seanagh” She returned the smile, and shook his hand whilst grinning very happily as she took the seat next to him. _Well she seems nice. Quite pretty, nice smile...and British, that’s comforting._

“Jenson, are you still with us?”  Martin asked. Jenson looked up at him, slowly returning to the real world.

“Huh? Yeah I’m fine, jet lag” He shrugged. “I’ll be alright”

“Right, let’s begin. So everyone we’re all here as this is a very important day, welcoming in our new driver Miss Seanagh Palmer...” Martin began, Jenson lost focus after that. He was mainly paying attention to what he had to say about Seanagh, and what she said herself. Today was important and Jenson knew he had to get some form of idea about her, her driving style, how competitive she was stuff like that. The meeting lasted for a couple of hours, of which the majority of it was spent slipping in and out of attentiveness and drinking tea, Jenson though it was a good idea to lay off the coffee for now. Jenson thought he had a pretty good idea of his new team mate; twenty four years old, a former F3 driver (Jenson already knew that), tends to be more competitive with other drivers than with her team mate, with a quite precise and sometimes aggressive driving style, and judging by the footage he’d seen of her time in Formula 3 she was a very good driver and won the last three seasons by fairly wide margins.

Once the meeting was finished, all of the ‘important people’ left and only Jenson, Seanagh and Martin were left in the room.

“Now, I want to run by you two very quickly. I didn’t want to bring it up in front of everyone. I know what everyone else would have thought” Martin explained to both drivers, still in what Jenson called ‘meeting mode’.

“And what’s that?” Seanagh asked, sounding a little concerned.

“Um, well this is going to sound quite odd but. Seanagh, just a little word of warning, the FIA have told me to tell you that any romantic involvement between any of the drivers is to be completely avoided otherwise you will get into to quite a bit of trouble from them” Jenson had to take his time to think about what Martin just said.

“Have they completely lost their minds?!” He blurted out loud without thinking. Martin merely shrugged his shoulders in response.

“It’s fine Martin really, to be honest I’m not surprised. Just because I’m a _woman_ ” Jenson wasn’t shocked at the annoyed tone in Seanagh’s voice, if he was in her shoes he’d be as pissed off as she was right now, maybe even a little bit more.

“Well, that’s that as they say.  Now, let’s take you down stairs Seanagh, so you can meet your team of race engineers and have a shot in the simulator. Jenson, you care to join us?”

“Sure” He smiled and followed Martin and Seanagh out the door. It was now that Jenson could fully take in Seanagh’s appearance. She was wearing the smart variant of the team uniform, shirt, black trousers and smart shoes. And she was also quite short but a lot of people were shorter than Jenson, she had long dark brown curly hair and bright sparkling green eyes. _One thing’s for sure, this will be a very interesting season._


	2. Breakfast, Lunch and Coffee

Monte Carlo; it was arguably the most beautiful and glamorous city in the world. Nico rubbed his eyes, attempting to block the sunlight from his vision. It certainly wasn’t this bright yesterday morning. _Food, I need food._ And with that thought, Nico somehow managed to pull himself out of his bed and toward the kitchen to make himself breakfast. He looked through various cupboards; some he didn’t even remember existed before he gave in and made himself a bowl of muesli with some extra raisins and sultanas for good measure. Nico looked out the windows that lead onto the veranda and onto his own little personal beach. The weather was beautiful today, warm and sunny, he was almost outside when he realised he was still in the underwear that he woke up in. _I should probably go and get dressed._

After the near embarrassment of almost eating his breakfast outside half naked, Nico sat with his toes in the sand drinking a mug of hot coffee. He had loads of friends here in Monaco and in Germany but he couldn’t help feeling that extra bit lonely today. The majority of Nico’s fellow drivers had wives, girlfriends, fiancées, someone they loved to spend their time with, and to celebrate their wins with. Nico loved that feeling of sharing something special with that one special person, and someone to cook him Italian food. And that was something Nico missed after Vivian, something he missed a lot.

 *  *  *

Many miles away in London, Raven was only just beginning to think about getting out of bed. If Seanagh were here, Raven would already have been up for three hours and would be on her fourth cup of coffee. At least breakfast would have been on the table. _Hmm, what can I cook that keeps her majesty happy and won’t burn the house down...?_ Raven decided that toast was the best option and put some bread in the toaster and made herself a large mug of delicious coffee, with _lots_ of sugar. Whilst waiting for the kettle to boil Raven went to her room to pick up her phone to text Seanagh to see how she was getting on. Raven looked up their conversation on her phone and saw the most recent message from Seanagh was over two hours ago;

‘ _Just arrived, the place is HUGE and it turns out a load of sponsors will be at the meeting as well. Wish me luck :) x’._ Raven though that things must have been going well if she hadn’t sent a text since then. Raven decided to reply, letting Seanagh know that she was finally out of bed.

‘ _Hope everything’s going well, I’ll call you tonight oh and don’t get too dreamy eyed over Button ;) xx’_

If Raven was going to be brutally honest, she was a little jealous that Seanagh had been given the number two driving spot on the McLaren team. Raven loved racing more than anything else in the world, still it was a great opportunity for Seanagh, and Raven was proud of her all the same. Raven was sure that she would get her chance soon enough. Raven’s phone buzzed a few minutes later, she had gotten a text.

_‘Hey, everything’s going well (apart from something that happened earlier on, but I’ll tell you about that later). The team’s great, everyone’s been very welcoming. Jenson’s lovely (and yeah I’ll admit, he’s very cute) any way I’m off to lunch, I’ll speak to you later. Oh and you might want to have a look at the McLaren twitter page ;) x’_

Raven logged onto twitter, her timeline was going nuts. She sighed and opened up the latest picture on McLaren’s twitter page.

‘ _Everyone here at Vodafone McLaren Mercedes would like to offer our best wishes for this season to @JensonButton and our new driver @SeanaghPalmer’_

The caption went along with a picture of Jenson and Seanagh in team uniform standing next to each other, hands on the other’s waist smiling away very happily. Raven chuckled and began typing a reply, just as she placed her phone down on the table the kettle boiled. _Took it long enough._  

 *  *  *

“Yeah, everyone at McLaren’s great. We have a really good team of talented people, engineers, pit crew you name it it’s the best of the best here. I’m sure you’ll fit in just fine” Jenson explained to Seanagh, it had been a very busy few hours for her and all she wanted was a sit down, a cup of tea and a chicken and bacon sandwich. All of which she just had for her lunch. Just then her phone buzzed in her pocket, and Seanagh’s cheek’s flushed red when the sound of the very loud Star Trek related text alert turned half the heads in the room in Jenson and Seanagh’s direction.

“Uh... do you mind if I get that?” Seanagh asked Jenson, trying to keep her face from view.

“Not a problem” Jenson chuckled and preceded to pull his phone from his pocket. Seanagh looked at the text she just got from Raven;

_‘Aw don’t you two look adorable together ;)’_ Seanagh was going to kill Raven when she got back to London. She turned off her phone and put it back in her pocket.

“You fancy going outside, it’s a little stuffy” Jenson asked clearing away his tray. Seanagh nodded and followed him out the door into the cold air. “Right, you’re good” Jenson looked over his shoulder towards the building once they were a good few metres away. Seanagh buried her head in her hands as her and Jenson continued to walk through the slush that had made its home on the tarmac. “The was so embarrassing, I am _so_ sorry about that”

“Don’t worry about it, I’ve had worse happen” Jenson smiled nervously, adjusting his cap. “When I first started here, my mum called Ron Dennis, the former team principal, to tell me that I’d left my phone at my parent’s place. I wasn’t allowed to forget about it for months” He continued.

“Yeah, that’s definitely worse” Seanagh giggled, stuffing her hands in her fleece pockets trying to keep her hands warm. She was going on the simulator next; she really didn’t need frozen hands for that.

“So, you’re British” Jenson very obviously stated, he must have been trying to make conversation.

“Yeah, I am” Seanagh laughed nervously.

“So what part of the world are you from then?”

“Northampton, but I live in London now” Seanagh replied with a proud smile. “You?”

“Somerset” Jenson replied.

“Really? You don’t sound it, but I guess you get that a lot”

“Yeah, you’re not wrong there with that one” Jenson chuckled, placing his hands in his pockets “Nervous for the simulator?” Jenson asked, changing the topic of the conversation as they turned to go back to the building.

“Yeah a little, I’m just glad I’m not allowed in the actual car”

“You’ll do great; I’ll be going in first just so you can see how it works from the outside. Then you’ll go in...”

“So everyone can see what sort of driver they’re working with”

“Yeah now a few things to remember; try and get your lap times under two minutes don’t go too fast around the corners...  oh and don’t crash the car” Seanagh smiled and nodded as if taking a mental note. _The hard work starts now I guess._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I decided to continue on with this. I started writing this a while ago and I've got quite a lot done so far, so I'll hopefully be aiming to update every two days or so (school works getting a little crazy at the minute, so apologies in advance for late updates).
> 
> I'm setting this over a long-ish time period (5 years tops) so when this is finished it'll be pretty long but I hope you all enjoy reading it (and thanks to everyone who read this when I first put it up, it's really appreciated)


	3. McLaren Technology Centre

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A random and unexpected update, I found this on my laptop just now and though that I might as well put this up.
> 
> Hoping to have another chapter up tomorrow.

_31 st January 2013 – McLaren Technology Centre, Woking_

The next few weeks couldn’t have been busier for Seanagh; simulator sessions, photo shoots, meetings, seat fittings, getting measurements taken for her racing overalls, many vigorous training sessions to get her fitness up so she’d be able to handle the constant G-force in the car. And yet after all that, she still hadn’t seen her car for the first time yet. Today would be Seanagh’s last visit to the factory in Woking before both she and Jenson were to be given a couple of days off for last minute preparation and training before they were due in Jerez for Winter testing, and it wasn’t that long before the first race of the season in Australia . _The Grand Prix..._ How could it only be a few short weeks away?

“Morning!” Jenson waved Seanagh over as she walked in. Seanagh smiled and walked over to him.

“Morning” She grinned as Jenson handed her a cup of coffee. “Thanks, do you know what we’re doing today?” She asked carefully sipping on her coffee.

“More simulator stuff I recon” Jenson replied, trying – and failing – to hide the smile on his face. “Are you alright? You’re about as white as a sheet” He asked her concerned.

“Yeah, just pre-race jitters. That’s all” She sighed, taking another sip of her coffee.

“Pre-race? The Grand Prix isn’t for another good few weeks” Jenson smiled briefly, and then saw the scared expression on Seanagh’s face and gently patted her shoulder. “You’ll be fine”

 *  *  *

 _Poor girl._ Jenson thought as both him and Seanagh walked through the various corridors of the factory toward the garage where the cars were kept.  Of course she thought they were going down to the simulator, but Jenson wanted this to be a surprise or her. Both of the cars had arrived yesterday, and she would have gone to see her car then, but Jenson pulled Martin aside and asked him if he could show her the car himself. Martin agreed, and for good reason. For a driver their car is the most precious thing in the world to them and seeing it for the first time is the best feeling in the world; as Seanagh was about to find out.

 *  *  *

It was obvious to Seanagh that Jenson wasn’t taking her to the simulator. _So where is he taking me then?_ Seanagh kept on asking where they were going but Jenson just replied with a charming smile and “You’ll find out soon enough”. Once they finally arrived at the other end of the building Jenson scanned his security card and the large double doors in front of them opened. The room they were in was dark, even though there were floor to ceiling windows on one side of the room, the blinds on them were drawn to let in very little light, all she could see was a large silhouette in the middle of the room.

“Jenson, where are we?” She asked cautiously, _is Jenson even still here?_ All of a sudden the whole room was illuminated and Seanagh’s sight was temporarily blinded with the bright light, the only thing she could detect was the movement of fabric.

Once Seanagh could see again, there was only one thing she focused on. Right there in the middle of the room, the McLaren MP4-28. The car _._ She rushed over to it, taking in its appearance, she was in awe. Once there she delicately brushed the tips of her fingers over the cool metal, it was then that she saw it.  Right there on the side of the car, a few centimetres away from the headrest was a small British flag with ‘Palmer’ next to it, with the number six on the nose and rear wing. _My car, it’s my car._ Seanagh squealed excitedly and took in everything about the car again, the stunning silver finish, the aerodynamic curves, it was perfect.

“You two want some time alone” Jenson chuckled; Seanagh briefly forgot that he was in the room. He walked over, hands in his pockets, looking very pleased with himself. Seanagh rolled her eyes.

“You knew about this didn’t you?” She asked, taking another look at her car.

“The official car reveal is today, then they’re getting shipped off to Jerez for winter testing if you’re in for arriving a few days early” Jenson grinned while still looking at the car. Seanagh smiled and headed towards the door, taking the very obvious hint.

“What’s wrong Button? Scared I’ll be faster than you?” She grinned, winking at him as she walked out the door followed by Jenson’s laughter.


	4. Journey To Australia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the update I promised, it's a little longer and the first few chapters, but anyway, enjoy!
> 
> NB - Hoping to have another chapter up tomorrow.

_Tuesday 12 th March 2013 – North London_

Whoever was on the other side of the front door seemed to want Raven out of bed pretty urgently as they were very close to knocking the door down. Raven sighed as she somehow managed to haul herself out of bed to answer the door. _Seanagh must be out._ Raven thought as she was the one that always answered the door in the morning as Raven would still be asleep.

“Hello” She put on a smile, trying not to sound like she might murder the person who just woke her up.

“Good morning Miss Sanders. I’ve your post here, and there’s a parcel for Miss Palmer that needs signing for” Raven sighed and signed for Seanagh’s parcel. Raven was given the parcel and three other letters before the postman left. _Jeez, what’s Seanagh ordered this time? The Eiffel tower?!_ Raven thought as she hauled the large and rather heavy parcel onto the coffee table and began to sort through the letters; junk mail, one letter for Raven and the other was for Seanagh. The letter looked important, by closer examination the envelope had came from Woking, from the McLaren head office. And as turned out, so did the large parcel. Raven placed Seanagh’s letter on top of her parcel as she went into the kitchen to make herself a cup of coffee.  Moments later Seanagh came bounding through the door out of breath, she had just arrived back from her morning run.

“Morning” She panted, opening herself a new bottle of chilled water from the fridge.  “Any post?” She asked.

“On the table” Raven would only communicate in short sentences until she had her coffee. Seanagh walked over to the coffee table in the middle of the living room to see to her parcel.

“IT’S HERE, IT’S FINALLY HERE!” Seanagh screamed excitedly as she opened it. She pretty much resembled a young child at Christmas. Raven shook her head and sighed as she added four heaped teaspoonfuls of sugar to her coffee. “Raven! Raven look!” Raven turned round and saw Seanagh hold up a set of white racing overalls with various brand logos on it.

“Oh, nice” She smiled weakly. “I’m going back to bed” Raven grunted, carrying her coffee back to her room.

“Yeah well don’t be asleep for too long, we have to leave for the airport at 7!” Seanagh shouted to her. _Great, 24 hours on a plane with little miss excited._

*  *  *

“RAVEN! We need to go now; the car will be here in 5 minutes!” Seanagh shouted to her flatmate who insisted on having a shower 15 minutes before they needed to leave for the airport.

“It’ll be fine. They’ll probably be late anyway!” Raven called back from her room. Seanagh rolled her eyes and adjusted her shirt and hat _._ Over the past few weeks Seanagh had really began to feel accepted by the McLaren team, more and more people had began to say hello to her when she was at the factory, it was a start more than anything else.Just then someone knocked on the front door, _great the team’s here and I’m running late, what a great rep this will give me._ Seanagh rushed to the door and opened it, seeing Jenson standing at the other side.

“Hey, are you about ready?” Jenson asked smiling, leaning against the door frame.

“Uh, almost. Raven’s just getting her stuff together” Seanagh replied sighing, _she’s making me look like an idiot in front of my team mate._ Seanagh had invited Jenson in andthe pair had been talking for a couple of minutes when Raven arrived in the living room in her Carlin Formula three team uniform wheeling her large suitcase behind her. Raven grinned when she saw Seanagh standing with Jenson.

“Hi, _you_ must be Jenson” She grinned, holding out her hand.

“Yeah, nice to meet you, F3 driver huh?” Jenson chuckled, shaking Raven’s hand. “I’ll go to the car, tell them you’re both coming down” Jenson left and shut the door behind him.

“Well...” Raven grinned at Seanagh. “He’s cute!” She exclaimed. Seanagh rolled her eyes at her ex-team mate’s remark; they had both been teammates in Formula three for the past few years, hence why they both shared a flat together, not to mention the fact that they had been friends for years before that.

“Whatever you say Rae” Seanagh replied, locking the door to their flat.

“He is though. You two would be adorable together”

“Don’t even go there Raven. It would be completely unprofessional”

“Jeez, you’re such a killjoy” Raven sighed as both she and Seanagh reached the car that was to take them to the airport.

“I’ll get those for you girls, you can both just get in the car” Jenson smiled. Seanagh hesitated before Jenson nodded and placed both cases in the boot.

“Wow, this car is brilliant!” Raven exclaimed as she helped herself to a bottle of Irn Bru from the mini fridge. “What?! I’m Scottish” Seanagh laughed at Raven before clipping in her seatbelt as the car drove them away from the flat and towards the airport.

*  *  *

“Qantas flight QA10 to Melbourne is now ready to board for First Class passengers” Nico picked up his bags, disposed of his empty coffee cup and headed toward the departure gate behind Lewis. Nico was looking forward to this season, compared to his other seasons; last year wasn’t his best, pretty much everyone knew that. But somehow he knew that this year would be better. He didn’t know why, but he just knew. Nico handed his passport and boarding pass to the attendant at the gate, who flashed him a very wide smile.

“Thanks” He muttered walking past the attendant and onto the walkway that lead him to the plane. Up ahead he heard laughter, a man’s (that sounded like Jenson’s) and a woman’s laugh, no two women laughing. Either way he recognized neither of them. _Jenson can charm any woman he sets his eyes on, how is that even possible?_

“Hey Nico!” Jenson called him over. “How are you doing? This is Seanagh, my new team mate” Jenson introduced the small brunette that was standing by his side, he recognised her from somewhere. It took Nico a few minutes to remember where he’d seen her before. She extended her hand and he shook it gladly. Then Nico remembered; _That’s where I’ve seen her before..._

“It’s good to see you again Seanagh, it’s been a while”

“Yeah it has” She laughed brightly, Jenson looked at both of them bemused. “I met Nico back when I was still karting; I went along to one of the F3 Euro series races and met Nico there” Seanagh explained to Jenson who nodded.  “Well we best be getting on the plane” Seanagh smiled leading Nico and Jenson onto the plane. “Where about are you seated?” She asked chirpily as the three of them headed into first class.

“Uh, 14 B” Nico replied.

“Oh” Seanagh replied, smiling. “It was nice to see you again Nico, good luck for this season” and with that she was already in her seat; Nico was then distracted by the strong smell of coffee. He tried to ignore it and went to his seat, but to his surprise the smell was getting stronger. Once Nico had arrived at seat 14B the smell was right under his nose, and that would make sense since the smell was coming from the seat next to his. Sitting in 14A was a pretty young woman with bright purple hair. _Well, that’s different._ Nico placed his bag in the overhead locker and sat down after getting out his iPad and a book he was currently reading – he couldn’t remember the title. The girl who Nico was sat to, stood up, and used his thigh for support. Once she stood up Nico met her gaze. A beautiful pair of bright blue eyes.

“Oh I’m so sorry; I didn’t know you were there!” She said blushing.

“It’s quite alright. I’m Nico” He smiled, extending his hand.

“R-Raven” Nico smiled at Raven, staring at the cup of coffee. “If you want, I can get you one from the bar?”

“Sure” Raven smiled and left. _Well, she’s nice._

*  *  *

Raven rushed towards where Seanagh and Jenson were sitting. They were both laughing about something that had happened when they were recording stuff for Sky Sports a few weeks ago, something about a bar and darts, she didn’t pick up the full conversation.

“Seanagh, can I borrow you for a minute?” She asked hesitantly. Seanagh nodded and followed Raven to the upstairs bar. 

“What’s this about then?” She asked. Raven took a breath before speaking.

“He’s cute”

“Who is?”

“The guy I’m sitting next to, a guy called Nico...”

“Oh...” Seanagh smiled. “You mean Nico Rosberg. He’s one of the drivers for Mercedes”

“Yeah, he likes coffee” Raven said grinning. Once the girls had reached the bar Seanagh ordered two teas and two coffees.

“Well if he likes coffee then it’s all good from here on out then isn’t it?” Seanagh laughed, Raven and coffee were one of those things that were almost inseparable.

“Yeah...” Raven trailed off, a large grin plastered all over her face. The flight attendant cleared his throat to notify Raven and Seanagh that their drinks were ready. Seanagh thanked him since Raven was still in a daze.

“Oi Rae. You still here?” Raven shook her head and returned to reality. Seanagh rolled her eyes and smiled as she added the right amount of milk and sugar to both cups of tea. Raven sighed happily and did the same, since she didn’t know how Nico took his coffee she picked up a few sachets of sugar and three small pots of milk. “Well Raven, if you’re happy then I’m delighted” Seanagh said as they descended the stairs to return to their seats.

“And... you and Jenson seem to be getting along swimmingly”

“Raven I’ve told you before. It’s not allowed” Seanagh handed Jenson his tea a few moments later.

“Oh do you know what time we’re arriving?” Raven asked, so she knew how much time she’d have with Nico.

“About quarter past seven in the morning I think, Australian time of course. Why?”

“Oh no reason. See you” Raven grinned and walked back towards her seat. “I have coffee, I didn’t know how you took it so I just brought milk and sugar” Raven said to Nico, handing over the coffee, milk and sugar.

“Thanks” He smiled as their hands briefly brushed against each other. Raven awkwardly shuffled past Nico to get into her seat. She noticed Seanagh was glancing at them both as she was speaking to Martin Whitmarsh – McLaren’s team principal. Raven pulled out her phone from her pocket and texted Seanagh.

‘ _Did he just stare at me when I went past him?’_

 _‘Yeah... German pervert’_ Seanagh replied.

“Wait, Nico’s a pervert!” Jenson exclaimed. The whole of first class fell silent and turned to look at Nico and Raven. Raven heard a yelp from Jenson’s seat a few seconds afterwards. “I meant Hulkenberg!” He said, rubbing his arm and glaring at Seanagh. Raven shook her head and laughed quietly. About forty five minutes later, the plane took off and was headed for Melbourne. Once the seatbelt sign was switched off Seanagh walked over.

“Hi, I just wanted to apologize about before. Jenson was just being an idiot as usual” Seanagh smirked, speaking the last sentence a little bit louder so Jenson could hear.

“It’s fine” Raven replied.

“So... how’s it going?”

“Fine, he likes coffee. Wait you knew that. He’s likes Disney movies, Finding Nemo is his favourite” Raven grinned.

“So where is he anyway?”

“Toilet” She replied. Jenson walked past them both to speak to one of the McLaren engineers, lightly hitting Seanagh’s shoulder as he walked past her.

“Hey... Oh, hi Seanagh” Nico said, seeing the British driver standing over his seat.

“Excuse me” Seanagh grinned and left, smacking the back of Jenson’s head as she walked past him.  Raven chuckled and returned her attention to her in-flight movie, almost completely oblivious to the outside world.

*  *  *

Nico sighed with content as he finished his dinner, for aeroplane food it wasn’t that bad, but he was in first class, in Nico’s mind the food should at least be semi-decent, which it was.

“Good dinner” He remarked, handing both his and Raven’s trays to the passing flight attendant. Since it was getting late, some people on the plane had already fallen asleep. But the majority of the McLaren team were still awake, including Jenson and Seanagh who Raven had seen drinking coffee and skittles. She didn’t seem too pleased about that. But after a while the giggling had gone once they had both went to the upstairs bar. By this point Nico was starting to feel tired himself, but he wanted to stay up and just speak to Raven for the rest of the flight.

“So...” Nico began, but he stopped once he saw Raven’s head resting on his shoulder. He smiled to himself and rested his head on hers. _A couple of hours sleep won’t hurt..._

*  *  *

Seanagh walked down the stairs from the first class bar quietly, Martin had told both her and Jenson to try and get as much sleep as they could on the flight, since they would both be doing a lot of press after they landed. And also because Martin had said that both she and Jenson were making too much noise for his liking.

“Oi, move faster!” Jenson whispered, gently pushing her down the aisle toward their seats.

“Oh for goodness sake Jenson be quiet” Seanagh replied in a loud whisper. Seanagh walked past where Raven and Nico were sitting, but for some reason Jenson had pulled her back.

“Take a look at this” Jenson nodded his head toward them. Nico and Raven were both fast asleep, Raven’s head was resting on Nico’s shoulder and Nico’s head was rested on Raven’s.

“Aw, cute” Seanagh smiled as she pulled her phone from her pocket. Seanagh took a picture of them both and happily put her phone back in her pocket.

“What was that for?” Jenson asked once they were back in their seats.

“Oh nothing” Seanagh replied grinning. “Night Jenson” Seanagh pulled her blanket over herself and adjusted her pillow on her now reclined seat. _Definitely a match made in heaven._

*  *  *

Seanagh was awoken the next morning (the lights on the plane were on and it felt like morning) by Jenson trying – and failing – to get out of his seat without disturbing her. “Morning” She yawned. “What time is it?”

“It’s just after half five, Australian time. I was going up to the bar, fancy a cuppa?” Jenson said checking his watch. Seanagh nodded and followed him upstairs. “You sleep alright?”

“Yeah sure” Seanagh replied rubbing her eyes, trying to get her body to wake up faster. Jenson had decided last minute to order two coffees for Raven and Nico. Once back at their seats, Seanagh saw that both Nico and Raven were still fast asleep. Everyone in first class was beginning to wake up by now and Seanagh thought that it would be best for nobody to see them sleeping with their heads resting against each other – people might get ideas in their heads. Seanagh walked over to them carrying Raven’s coffee and Jenson followed behind. She pondered for a moment and grinned, before clearing her throat to wake them both up. Nico moved first, and then Raven seconds later.

“Morning” Seanagh smirked mischievously, handing Raven her coffee. “We’re landing in about 90 minutes. I thought it might have been a good idea to wake you” She smiled as Jenson handed Nico his coffee. They both thanked them before Seanagh and Jenson returned to their seats. “In my defence I was doing them a favour” Seanagh said as she sat down, sipping on her tea. The nerves were beginning to kick in again. Today would be her first day of official press day before the race; Seanagh would probably be meeting some of the other drivers as well. She had already met Nico and she met his team mate Lewis Hamilton (who Seanagh had replaced at McLaren and who she also knew from karting) and he seemed nice, and thankfully not bothered about a female driver competing in F1 this season. But she knew that there would be others that wouldn’t be okay with it. For example one of the spectators with McLaren this weekend, Sergio Perez (who Seanagh had beaten out to the second race seat) was particularly annoyed by her being there and Seanagh would most likely have to get used that. But that had to be put in the back of Seanagh’s mind just now, all of this week all Seanagh would allow herself to focus on, was the race.


	5. The Hotel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter update as promised, not sure when the next part will be up, either tomorrow or Friday.

Jenson had been standing in baggage reclaim with the rest of the team for the past fifteen minutes; Martin had decided to wait until the cars to take everyone to the hotel had arrived before they tried to make their way through the mountain of paparazzi waiting for them in arrivals, they were all there for Seanagh, everyone knew that. Raven had left once she had gotten her bags, and there was a good chance that she would be at the hotel by now. As it turned out, a few of the other teams had arrived on the same flight as McLaren and Mercedes – Lotus, Ferrari and Red Bull. Jenson could tell that Seanagh was already under enough pressure by this point; Romain, Sebastian and Fernando had looked over at them a few times to check that their eyes weren’t deceiving them. _Yeah there’s a female driver this year, it’s not that big a deal._

“Right we can go now” Martin announced. Everyone had put on their sunglasses so they weren’t blinded by the camera flashes that awaited them in arrivals.

“Hey, you’ll be fine. Promise” Jenson whispered to Seanagh before they went into the sea of the cameras. It even looked like that a section of arrivals has been fenced off just to hold the paparazzi since there were so many of them. There were camera flashes going off left right and centre. As were various questions for Jenson’s team mate, but Jenson couldn’t make any of them out as all he heard was just a loud noise. Jenson had gotten used to all of the press that surrounded Formula 1, but he couldn’t imagine how Seanagh was feeling right now, in fact he didn’t want to think about it, his rookie days were long behind him. Once they had left the airport there were even more cameras waiting for them outside, at least the flashes from the cameras weren’t so bad in the bright sunlight. It was a short walk to the car that was waiting for them, Seanagh went in first, and then Martin and Jenson went in last.

“Right let’s go” Martin told the driver as the car pulled away from the airport. “Well done there, that would have been tough for anybody” He tried to reassure Seanagh but it didn’t seem to work. She didn’t reply as her head was buried in her hands. She sat up a few minutes later brushing her hair out of her eyes.

“That was horrible” She groaned, once again covering her face. Jenson nodded and sympathetically patted her shoulder. “Let’s just hope it doesn’t get any worse eh?” She smiled looking out the darkened windows.

“Just got off the phone with the hotel, the paparazzi have all been cleared away so we should be fine” Martin sighed with relief, no-one wanted to re-live what happened at the airport. The car pulled to a stop about ten minutes later behind two other cars. Jenson followed the rest of his team into the hotel once he retrieved his suitcase from the boot of the car. _Nice, the same hotel they put us in last year._ All the F1 drivers and their teams were put into the same hotel and were given their own floors, since there were so many people to accommodate for. The hotel lobby was packed, since five of the other teams had arrived. And the other five were due to arrive this evening. Jenson looked around and saw people from Lotus, Ferrari, Mercedes and Red Bull along with a few people from McLaren milling about. It took Jenson a while to find the rest of his team, and he was very grateful when he found Seanagh sitting with Lewis and Nico.

“Hey, quite packed in here wouldn’t you say” Jenson sighed sting next to his team mate, _at least she doesn’t look like she’s about to faint._ Nico and Lewis left for their rooms a few minutes later with the rest of the people from Mercedes, leaving Jenson alone with Seanagh.  “How are you feeling?”

“I’ve felt worse that’s for sure. I just wasn’t expecting so many cameras. But I’m pretty sure that half the room is staring at me” She was partially right; a good few of the drivers and engineers in the lobby were looking in their general direction. Some of them came over to say hi, others just walked past as if Seanagh wasn’t there.

“Hey Jenson, long time no see! How are you” Sebastian grinned as he greeted Jenson with a handshake.

“Not bad, looking forward to this season though” Jenson grinned, he was desperate to beat Seb in a few races this year. Sebastian then greeted Seanagh with a smile, he wished both drivers good luck for this season before he left to speak with his team, and it wasn’t long before Mark took his place.

“Jenson, how are you doing mate!” Mark greeted Jenson with a friendly hug.

“Good thanks”

“Ah you must be McLaren’s new driver, nice to meet you” Mark smiled at Seanagh and shook her hand. “Don’t you worry about all this, it’ll all calm down eventually” Mark ended up staying for a few minutes, having a catch up with Jenson and asking Seanagh about her racing career before F1. Mark seemed to bring Seanagh out her shell and managed to calm her nerves. “Well it was nice to meet you. Good luck for the season!” He waved and left to head to his room. The crowd in the lobby were beginning to thin; people from Louts and Ferrari were also beginning to leave, meaning McLaren were the only people left.

“He seems alright” Seanagh sounded nervous as she spoke for the third time today.

“Yeah Mark’s great, he’s a lovely guy”

“Right, sorry about the wait you two here are your keys. I want you both back here in 45 minutes for breakfast” Martin walked over handing them their hotel key cards. Jenson and Seanagh walked towards the lift and were both very happy once they were on the third floor, walking down the corridor toward their rooms.

“Looks like me and you are next door. If you need anything you know where to find me” Jenson smiled as he entered his room and shut the door behind him. He headed straight for the balcony and stood outside taking in the fresh air; the hotel was right next to the beach and was only a ten minute drive from the circuit. It was then that Jenson knew; _this year is going to be a great season._

 *  *  *

Seanagh sighed as she wheeled her case into the hotel room and was greeted by a huge hug from Raven.

“Hey” She mumbled.

“What’s wrong?” Raven asked.

“Oh you know, just been travelling for a day. Nervous about the Grand Prix, and to top it off about half of the other drivers have been looking at me like I’m dirt. I’m basically the laughing stock of F1 and the season hasn’t even started yet!” Seanagh burst into tears and went into the nearest room; she collapsed on the bed and began to cry even louder. She heard Raven storm in after her moments later.

“Yeah well, screw them! If they can’t respect another driver just because she hasn’t got any balls then they just need to fuck the hell off! You’re worth the whole bunch of them put together. You said it yourself that it was going to be tough will all the other driers and the media but your family has faith in you, I have faith in you and McLaren have faith in you. And they wouldn’t have taken you halfway around the world if they thought that you weren’t good enough, why do you think they chose you over Perez? Because _you’re_ the better driver” Raven hugged her friend. “The reason they’re treating you badly is because F1 has been a ‘men’s sport’ for a long time and you’re going to change that by kicking their asses on the circuit. Not by crying in your hotel room. And now you’re going to have a shower, get changed and go and have breakfast. Go on” Seanagh nodded and went into her en suite.

*  *  *

About forty minutes later Seanagh was showered and dressed in her team uniform. She walked into the living room and flopped down onto the sofa. “Feel better?” Raven asked

“Yeah, loads” Seanagh smiled. “And on Saturday and Sunday I am going to show them who can _really_ drive” She grinned pulling her ponytail through the back of her McLaren cap.

“Shouldn’t you be going? There’s a really hot guy standing at the door” Raven said smiling. Seanagh chuckled, picking up her key card.

“See ya Rae!” Seanagh said as she left the room and met Jenson in the corridor to walk down to breakfast.


	6. Poolside antics

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the late update, I've been quite busy for the past couple of days so I'm sorry to keep you guys waiting, next update should be either tomorrow or on Monday.

_Thursday 14 th March 2013 – Melbourne, Australia_

Thursday was a full day of press, interviews, photo shoots: the lot. It wasn’t until half past two in the afternoon before Seanagh was back in her room, collapsed on her bed eating the cold room service the Raven had left for her. Seanagh was feeling a lot better than she did yesterday, the weather for the rest of the week looked good, and the car was even better. The whole team was running on a high, in particular Jenson and Seanagh.

“Hey! I’m back from the pool” Raven called through. Seanagh greeted Raven in the living room area as she placed her room service tray by the door. “How was the press?”

“The same questions about twenty times over, cheers for the food” She replied closing the door. “Oh I can’t stay, I have a drivers meeting in fifteen minutes and Jenson is taking me there in five”

“I see, and how does it feel to be the first female F1 driver in twenty one years” Raven looked at her, mocking the tone that the journalists had been speaking in all day, Seanagh rolled her eyes, tempted to throw a pillow at her friend.

“If I hear that question one more time today I might actually scream” Seanagh sighed walking out onto the balcony, soaking up the first bit of sunshine she had been in all day, being cooped up indoors doing interviews all day wasn’t good for anyone, even grand prix drivers.

“Oh by the way...” Raven began, joining Seanagh on the balcony.

“Yeah?”

“I uh...”

“Oh my... is that the time?! Raven I need to go, I’m so sorry, I’ll catch up with you later” Seanagh spoke quickly and she picked up her key card and was out the door before Raven could say another word.

*  *  *

Nico arrived at the drivers meeting with a wide grin all over his face, he felt like the happiest man in the world. He and Lewis walked past various tables before sitting next to the McLaren drivers. Lewis was a little on edge since he was less than a meter away from his former team mate, but since both Nico and a spare seat were between them, it was a little less tense than it could have been. Nico looked around the room and saw that a few drivers hadn’t turned arrived yet. When the missing drivers arrived, every single head in the room turned to look at them, Seanagh was one of them and she sat down in the seat next to Jenson, and she was clearly very embarrassed. The FIA stewards looked around at the rooms of drivers – their eyes lingering disapprovingly at the drivers who arrived late – before starting the meeting.

*  *  * 

“Well that was a drag” Lewis remarked as he, Nico and the other drivers left the meeting ninety minutes later.

“Yeah...” Nico replied, not really paying attention. His head was very much in the clouds.

*  *  *

Nico grinned as he had just beaten Lewis at another round of Ping Pong. “That’s 5-1 to me; sure you don’t want to give up?”

“Fine, you win... hey isn’t that the girl you were sat next to on the flight?” Lewis asked peering over Nico’s shoulder. Nico turned round and smiled when he saw her; Raven.

“Yeah, it might be” He grinned.

“Well then go talk to her”

“But we have the drivers meeting in five minutes” Nico replied as he saw some of the other drivers that were at the pool leaving. “Hey... do you have something small I can write on?” Lewis rummaged his pockets before pulling out a small white card and a pen and placed them in front of Nico. “Thanks” Nico said, beginning to write down his number. Nico handed Lewis back the pen and went over to see Raven. She was sitting on a sun lounger reading a book looking very content with herself. Nico cleared his throat to get her attention and it worked.

“Hey Nico, I was wondering when I might find you again” She said, placing her book down on the table next to her.

“Yeah, look I haven’t got much time. I’m due at a drivers meeting in five minutes, but call me in about an hour. So we can meet up or whatever” Nico handed Raven the card with his number on it.

“Okay then, just so you have mine” Raven smirked writing what he assumed to be her number on the back of his hand. “See you later” Raven grinned as she kissed Nico’s cheek and left. Nico looked down at his hand and smiled and went over to walk Lewis to the meeting. Best start of a season by far.

*  *  *

“Nico... mate you alright?” Lewis asked, brining Nico back to reality.

“Yeah, I’m fine” Nico said, pulling out his phone.

 _‘I’m at the pool; you know where to find me’_ Nico grinned as he saw the text from Raven.

“I’ve got to go” Nico rushed off heading straight for the pool.

*  *  *

“Raven... Rae are you here?” Seanagh called out to the empty hotel room, getting no reply. She pulled out her phone and looked through her recent messages and saw one from Raven.

‘ _Hey, I’m at the pool with Nico ;)’_ Seanagh smiled, they really were a perfect match. Seanagh heard a knock at the door and went to answer it; she opened the door and saw Jenson leaning against the doorframe smiling. She greeted her team mate with a warm smile.

“Hey, fancy coming down to the pool. We’re free for the rest of the day”

“Sure” Seanagh smiled and followed Jenson out the door.

“So where’s Raven?”

“At the pool, with Rosberg” Jenson raised his eyebrows at the second part of Seanagh’s reply. “Yeah, they seem to be hitting it off quite well”

“So, how long have you known her then?” Jenson asked once they reached the hotel lobby.

“Who Raven?” Jenson nodded. “Since I was sixteen so... about eight years roughly”

“That long huh?”

“Yeah, we’re practically sisters” Seanagh replied with a smile. They walked through the hotel and arrived at the pool, Seanagh spotted Nico and Raven together at the ping pong table. “Oh dear, that’s not the greatest of ideas” Seanagh headed in direction of the ping pong table with Jenson following behind.

“Why?”

“Because, Raven’s _very_ competitive” Once Seanagh and Jenson arrived, it was clear that the match was getting very interesting. Seanagh shook her head and picked up the spare bat. “Want any help Rae?” She asked, hitting the ball away from her. Raven simply nodded.

“Jenson, I need help over here!” Nico called out to Jenson, who chuckled and picked up the spare bat on Nico’s side.

“Ah doubles, this’ll be interesting” Sebastian smirked as he walked over to watch the match. Kimi joined him a little while later. The Game went on for about thirty five minutes and had reached the final point, and the boys were starting to get a little tired.

“Sure you want to keep going lads, if you back out now. We won’t mind” Raven grinned, throwing the ball up into the air for Seanagh to catch.

“No, we’re fine” Nico replied lightly panting. “Right Jenson?” He asked, looking to the British driver for support.

“Yeah, fine” Jenson said, placing a bottle of water by his feet. Seanagh giggled as she served the ball. Nico hit the ball back, which Raven managed to save from going over the edge of the table; she hit the ball towards Jenson; who missed it by a few centimetres.

“Yes!” The Girls cheered hi-fiving each other. Jenson and Nico sighed shaking the girls’ hands.

“What do you fancy Seanagh? Champagne?” Raven asked smirking, Seanagh looked slightly stunned. “Oh come on, live a little! You two know where the bar is” Raven chuckled as she led Seanagh to her sun lounger. “Good game” She said once she had sat down.

“Yeah, so Raven...” Seanagh began as she tied back her hair.

“Yeah?”

“You and Nico, tell me everything”

*  *  * 

Jenson shook his head as walked with Nico towards the bar, joining the back of the long line.

“Sorry about that mate, I thought I had it” He apologised to Nico for losing the game.

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it. Do we really have to buy them champagne?” Nico asked once they were a little further up the queue.

“Well...” Jenson began looking over at Raven and Seanagh. “There’s nothing a little white lie can’t hurt” Jenson smirked. “Four lemonades please” He asked the bartender, placing some money on the bar.

“Wow, that’s harsh. So, how are you getting along with her then?”

“With Seanagh? Yeah she’s alright; I haven’t quite sussed her out though. But we’ll see” The bar tender took the money off the bar and gave Jenson his change. Jenson smiled and said thanks before heading over to give the girls their ‘champagne’. “Here you are ladies” Jenson smirked.

“Thanks... hang on a minute” Seanagh paused taking a sip of her drink. Jenson and Nico shared a nervous glance.

“Uh... no alcohol can be served until after 5pm” Nico’s eyes shifted between the two women. They both shared a mischievous look.

“Oh well, never mind” Raven smirked as both she and Seanagh stood up.

“What do you mean?” Nico asked, backing away from them slowly. Jenson looked behind him and saw that both he and Nico were centimetres away from the edge of the pool.

“Uh Nico...” Jenson said nervously.

“Yeah, you lads really need to cool off” Seanagh then lunged forward pushing Jenson into the pool, Jenson tried to grab onto her but it was no use and he fell backwards into the water. Once Jenson’s head was out of the water he saw that Nico had been pushed in as well. Jenson looked up and saw that Seanagh, Raven and the rest of the drivers were in fits of laughter at his and Nico’s misfortune. Jenson and Nico managed to haul themselves out, but the laughter hadn’t stopped. Jenson and Nico were soaking wet and Jenson’s clothes were stuck to his body. _We have got to get them back for this._

*  *  *

“Don’t even think about it Jenson, I know you’re going to try so don’t even bother” Seanagh laughed throwing Jenson a towel; she could see that he wanted to get his own back. Seanagh looked over at Raven who was still laughing at their prank.

“ _Never_ mess with a woman boys, otherwise that happens” Raven chuckled sitting back down.

“Yeah, you should be dry soon” Seanagh added, she could see that Jenson was glaring at her from the corner of her eyes. She looked up at her team mate, who now had a large grin on his face.

“Yeah, probably” Jenson then lunged toward Seanagh and pulled her up out of her seat.

“Jenson, what are you... Get off me” She said struggling against Jenson’s grip. Before she could move, Seanagh felt herself fall backwards into the water. She did however pull Jenson in with her. Seanagh looked over to Jenson who was laughing his head off.

“Not very nice is it” He spoke once he was out of the pool. Seanagh glared at the older driver.

“No it’s not” She replied once she too was out of the water. “You coming Rae?” Seanagh turned on her heel and left, splashing droplets of water from her hair in Jenson’s face for good measure.


	7. Race 1: Australia 2013

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter update, thanks to everyone who's read this so far, this passed 250 hits the other day so I just wanted to say thank you so much. I would like to add that the GP results in this fic will be different to what happened in real life (as it's a sort of AU fic, I wanted to make some small changes) but the majority of race results will be kept mainly the same, although everything after the 2013 season will be different race wise.

_Sunday 18 th March 2013 – Albert Park, Melbourne_

The nerves that Seanagh were feeling now, were ten times worse than the ones she felt back home. She knew she had to do well in the race today, after such good performances in free practice and qualifying expectations about her first race today were higher than most people first thought. _You’re in fifth, that’s good! You just need to stay there_. Jenson had done better of course; he had qualified in third place behind Webber. It wasn’t long until the race, and Seanagh needed to calm down. She was walking through the paddock towards the garage with her physio Vanessa and Richard who was Seanagh’s PA. A few cameras were trained on the three of them as they walked towards the McLaren garage, Seanagh waved at one of the cameras, tensing up with nerves as she did so. Feeling nervous she put in the earphones and pressed play on her iPod, listening to the first track that came up on shuffle.

_‘Set the status quo in place, let them other burn_

_Show them that you’re here to stay, tell them watch and learn_

_Time to put the wheels in motion never to return, get on with myself tonight_

_‘Cause it’s alright, don’t have to be afraid_

_There’s a spotlight, that’s shining just for you_

_Go the distance, let’s show ‘em what we’re really made of’_

The lyrics seemed strangely fitting to Seanagh’s current situation, she had a lot to prove to a lot of people. She handed her iPod to Richard who headed to the back of the garage.

“You’ll be great today, don’t worry about a thing” Vanessa smiles as she handed Seanagh a hair bobble to tie back her hair. “Be right back” She smiled politely as Jenson took her place.

“Good luck for today, you’ll do great” Jenson smiled at her, gently squeezing her shoulder in reassurance.

“Thanks Jenson” Seanagh looked over towards Jenson’s side of the garage; it looked like his whole family was there, it made Seanagh wish that all of her family could have been there as well. “Good luck to you too” He returned to his side of the garage and spoke to who Seanagh assumed was Jenson’s dad, wearing the most pristine pink shirt Seanagh had ever seen.

“Here you go” Vanessa and Richard returned with a bottle of water along with Seanagh’s helmet and balaclava. “At least we’ll be able to tell you and Jenson apart on track” Seanagh looked over at Jenson who was getting into his car and looked back down at her helmet. Instead of a patriotic red, white and blue Seanagh helmet was a pale blue that faded into white at the visor area with orange stripes going round the helmet. Seanagh put her helmet on and went to get in the car, nestling herself in the cockpit. She pulled on her black racing gloves and flipped down her visor as she drove her car out the garage and towards the grid.

*  *  *

Two minutes before the start of the race. The weather was good for the race today; scattered clouds, and thankfully dry and the track was a warm twenty five degrees; perfect conditions for a race. Seanagh pulled into the third row of cars alongside Nico, who gave her a nod of reassurance before the cars pulled out for their formation lap. Seanagh drove the car slowly round the track getting a feel for the corners, and to work heat into the tyres. And before she knew it, Seanagh was back at the grid waiting for the race to start. She looked up and saw the lights begin to turn red one-by-one. They then went out and Seanagh pushed her foot down onto the accelerator. The 2013 season had officially begun.

*  *  *

Lap fifty three, Jenson was happily in third place, but he was so close to Vettel he could almost smell the Red Bull’s exhaust gas.

“Jenson, if you think you can overtake Vettel to get second then go for it” Jenson let out a sigh as he pulled out behind Sebastian’s slipstream and went straight past him into second place. _Great I’ve got second, now I just have to stay here._ “Nice overtake, just try and hold the position and keep up the pace” From what Jenson knew there were only five laps left. _Ha only five!_ But they were five very crucial laps, Kimi was in front and Vettel was behind. _Just stay in second Jenson, you can do this._

*  *  *

Raven watched eagerly from the grandstands as the cars began to cross the finish line at the end of the race, she could see the cars but she couldn’t make out the drivers; Lotus, McLaren, Red Bull, Ferrari, McLaren, Red Bull, the two Force India cars, Ferrari and the second Louts made up the top ten drivers. Raven sighed with relief; Seanagh had made it into the top five! Raven looked up to the large screen opposite her to see where the drivers had finished; Raikkonen, Button, Vettel, Massa, Palmer, Webber, Sutil, di Resta, Alonso, Grosjean. The top ten names flashed on the screen and there were cheers coming from many British fans, three drivers in the top ten and one on the podium; they certainly had something to cheer about. Raven grinned as she watched the victory lap; she was more than proud of Seanagh.

Once the victory lap was over Raven left the grandstand and headed over to the McLaren garage, she pushed her way through the crowds who were gathering around the podium where the winning drivers would soon be appearing. It took Raven a while to get to the McLaren garage since she ended up stuck in the crowd who were watching the drivers on the podium, but she made it eventually.

The McLaren garage was easily the personification of excitement, and who could blame them given their great start to the season; both drivers in the points, and McLaren were leading the constructor’s table by two points ahead of Lotus. Seanagh was currently being engulfed by the McLaren team with hugs and many cheers of congratulations. But it was when Jenson arrived that the celebrations officially begun; he had managed to find another bottle of champagne somewhere and began spraying everyone in the garage before taking a swig form the bottle. Raven began to make her way through the swarm of engineers to congratulate both drivers.

“Raven!” Seanagh squealed as she went to hug Raven.

“See I told you so, top five finish! And you finished ahead of two world champions. Well done to you as well Jenson, nice overtake on lap fifteen!” Raven shouted over the noise. Jenson jumped down from the nose cone of Seanagh’s car and walked over to the girls, holding the champagne bottle in one hand, and three glasses in the other.

“Thanks, Nico managed to get this from the Mercedes garage, but don’t tell anyone” Jenson chuckled, carefully pouring out the drinks.

“Well, that’s not too bad, since you and Nico owe us one” Raven smirked sipping on her drink. “Nice, how come we never got this good champagne when we were on the podium” Raven turned to Seanagh, who shrugged she shoulders in response.

“Hey, good race guys. But I’m gonna need that champagne back” Nico walked into the McLaren garage grinning, Raven could already feel her cheeks turning red.

“Maybe, but if I were you I’d be careful in Malaysia. You are not going to get away with that overtake on lap thirty” Seanagh grinned as she walked Raven away from the crowd to the front of the garage. Raven stayed quiet once they were outside, occasionally sipping on her drink. “What’s wrong with you? I’ve never seen you so quiet before” She asked.

“Nothing” Raven shrugged.

“Yeah, that’ll be right. Do you like the guy or not?” Seanagh didn’t have to say any names as Raven knew exactly who she was on about.

“Yeah I do, it’s just that I’m only coming along to a few races this season so I won’t see him as much” Raven replied.

“But you have his number right, that won’t stop you from speaking” Seanagh crossed her arms.

“Yeah, but he... Nico’s different. I don’t want to mess this up. I mean I’ve only known him for a few days but I just feel so happy around him, like I can just be me and he wouldn’t care” Raven sighed and sat down on the tarmac, Nico was the only guy that made Raven feel like this. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to see it.

“Look, he’s obviously very special to you. Just talk to him about it, I’m pretty sure he feels the same way” Seanagh sat down next to Raven

“You think so?” Raven asked. The thought of Nico liking her in that way was just incredible. Seanagh nodded in response as Nico and Jenson walked over to them.

“There you are... why are you sitting on the tarmac?” Nico asked, gesturing his hand out to Raven to help her up.

“We, uh... needed a sit down, and the only seat was the ground” Raven said, looking over at Seanagh nervously. She felt her cheeks beginning to turn red again.

“Right, oh Jenson, I remember Martin saying he wanted a word with us as soon as possible” Seanagh smiled, half leading half dragging Jenson back into the McLaren garage.

“What’s wrong with her?” Nico asked as Seanagh turned round smiling at them both.

“No idea” Raven replied. _Just relax; you’ve had a conversation with him before. Just tell him how you feel._ Raven sighed, feeling butterflies in her stomach. She looked up at the older German and sighed. _How on earth am I meant to tell him?_

“It doesn’t matter; anyway I was uh, wondering if you were planning on coming to any other races this season?” Nico asked with his usual charming smile.

“Yeah, I’ll be at Silverstone, possibly Hungary. And there’s a good chance I’ll be at all of the races after Italy” Raven returned the smile, awkwardly tapping the now empty champagne glass against her leg. 

“Great! I mean it’ll be good to see you there. I-”

“Nico, there you are, we need you in the garage!” Ross Brawn – the Mercedes team principal – walked over, interrupting Nico mid-sentence.

“Okay, I’ll be there in a few minutes” Ross turned and left. “So, as I was saying. Would you like to have dinner with me tonight? I understand if you’re busy or whatever but...”

“Yeah, I’d love to”

“You would?” Nico exclaimed grinning. “Great, well I’ll meet you in the hotel lobby at seven, is that alright?”

“Sounds good, I’ll see you then” Raven smiled.

“Okay, see you then” Nico kissed Raven’s cheek before running to try and catch up with Ross. Seanagh ran out a few seconds later.

“Well...” She asked excitedly. Raven grinned in response. _I’m sure she won’t mind if I tell her later._


	8. Australia: The Post Race Party

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the slightly late update, I got distracted by a sudden urge to make cupcakes, hope you enjoy this chapter, there will hopefully be another one up tomorrow.
> 
> NB - Also, thanks you to everyone who's read this so far, I'm really glad that people are enjoying reading this.

A good few hours after the race the drivers were finally allowed to leave the circuit to go back to the hotel. And Nico just couldn’t stop smiling. So much so that he almost walked into the revolving door.

“So Nico, you coming to the after party. It starts at seven” Lewis asked once he had managed to rescue Nico from walking into the door.

“Oh I can’t make it, sorry” Nico replied. “I have a date” Nico smiled looking over at Raven who was leaving to go upstairs with Jenson and Seanagh.

“Oh I see, well I hope you enjoy yourself man. She seems pretty special” Lewis patted Nico on the shoulder as they entered the lift.

“Yeah she really is” Nico grinned, unable to get Raven of his mind.

*  *  *

“Tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me!”  Seanagh bounced up and down on her bed, desperate to know the details of the conversation between Raven and Nico. “Come on Rae, please. I promise I won’t tell anyone” She smiled sweetly.

“Okay fine!” Raven sighed sitting down. Seanagh sat next to her waiting. “So after you and Jenson left he asked me if would be coming along to any of the other races” Raven began.

“Yeah”

“Then, he was about to ask me something but Ross Brawn interrupted him...” She continued.

“Go on...”

“So once we were alone again Nico, asked me out to dinner tonight”

“Oh my gosh!” Seanagh squealed and crushed Raven in a hug. Seanagh knew that Nico and Raven had hit it off on the plane, from what she knew they were perfect for each other.

“You can let me go now” Raven sighed. “So I can’t make the after party tonight, that’s when Nico’s taking me to dinner. But I’ll see if we can pop along for a bit”

“It’s fine don’t worry about it. But the big question is, what are you gonna wear?”

*  *  *

Nico sighed as he threw yet another jacket onto the bed, nothing seemed to look right. Nico couldn’t have been happier when he heard a knock at the door. _Took him long enough._

“Hey, sorry about the wait, Martin wanted to see me” Jenson smiled walking in to Nico’s hotel room. “What seems to be the matter?” He asked calmly.

“I’m having dinner with... someone and I don’t have anything to wear” Nico sighed, running his hands through his hair in frustration. “And now I’ve messed up my hair!”

“Hey, chill out Britney, what you’ve got on looks fine. Could do with a jacket though” Jenson replied walking through to Nico’s room where he was meat with a pile of jackets. Nico followed him through.

“Britney?!” Nico exclaimed at Jenson who looked very smug.

“That was just to get your attention” Jenson preceded to look through the pile of jackets. It was when he got to the bottom of the pile that he found one that looked alright. He handed Nico a black suit jacket, Nico it on and looked at himself in the mirror.

“Wearing a suit doesn’t look right without a tie” Nico sighed.

“Then undo the top two buttons on your shirt, it’ll look fine” Jenson spoke as he checked his hair in the mirror. Nico sighed, undoing the top two buttons on his shirt. “See, looks fine”.

“Thanks, hey how come you’re changed” Nico asked, he had only just noticed

“Because it’s the post-race party, that’s why” Jenson replied putting his hands in his pockets.

“Well, yeah but you didn’t take that long” Nico huffed.

“I didn’t put so much pressure on myself if that’s what you’re asking; look I’ve got to go. I need to change my shoes, good luck for tonight mate” Jenson looked at his feet as he walked towards the door.

“Right and thanks”

“Not a problem” Jenson nodded and left. Nico looked at his watch, thirty five minutes.He hopefully won’t be waiting for too long.

*  *  *

“Seanagh hurry up! I need to use the shower to you know” Raven shouted at the door, angrily tapping her foot.

“Alright, keep your hair on. You can have the shower now” Seanagh sighed walking out the bathroom, carrying her clothes in one hand and holding up the towel on her head with the other. Raven sighed and locked the bathroom door behind her. _Unbelievable..._

*  *  *

Raven walked in about twenty minutes later after her shower. Seanagh was already wearing the dress she had picked out for the party, and Raven’s dress was lying on the bed in her room. Seanagh must have picked it out because Raven had never seen it before. The dress was Purple (Raven’s favourite colour) with purple fabric draped diagonally across the dress with purple gems making up a belt across the waist. “I was saving it for myself, but you deserve it” Raven turned around and saw Seanagh leaning against the doorframe smiling.

“OH MY GOSH THANK YOU!!” Raven squealed hugging Seanagh happily.

“It’s not a problem, now get dressed. You haven’t got long before your date” Seanagh chuckled before shutting the door. Raven put on the dress; and it fitted her like a glove. She zipped up the dress and picked out the perfect pair of shoes and accessories to go with it; black leather heels with silver studs at the back and Raven’s favourite necklace, a black one that resembled a tangle of black thorns. She sighed and caught a reflection of herself in the mirror. _I hope it’s enough._ “Hey are you ready yet, I wanna see you in the dress” Seanagh said knocking on Raven’s door. Raven picked up a black clutch bag from her suit case and walked into the living area of her and Seanagh’s hotel room.

“Well, how do I look?” She asked cautiously.

“You look amazing, the dress suits you better. It’s yours of you want it”

“Really?!”

“Sure, purple’s not really my colour anyway” Seanagh replied with a smile. “I just need to fetch my necklace, I’ll be right back” She said half walking half running back to her room. Raven was somewhat nervous about her date, but the funny thing was that the only thing Raven was nervous about was a grand prix on a wet circuit. Still, Nico was different, Raven had known that from the get go; it was very rare that Raven would ever meet someone with the same passion for racing that she had, and it seemed that both Seanagh and now Nico were the exceptions to that statement. Seanagh returned a few minutes later, carrying a shiny gold clutch bag and a gold chain necklace around her neck. The dress that she had picked out was very pretty; it was beige with gold sequin detailing on the bodice, her shoes were the same colour as her dress, and she also had on a gold bracelet and gold nail polish on to match. Raven noticed that Seanagh had left her hair as it was and was wearing natural make up with a gold shimmer on her eyes.

“How do I look?” She asked twirling.

“You look great” Raven replied.

“Ugh! I forgot my phone two seconds!” Just as Seanagh turned away someone began knocking on the door. “Can you get that?” Seanagh called from her room.

“Sure!” Raven replied, she opened the door and saw a rather dashing Jenson Button on the other side.

“Hey, mind if I come in?” He asked grinning.

“Sure. Seanagh Jenson’s here!” Raven called.

“I’ll be there in a minute!” She replied.

“I see you got one of the good rooms, the TV in mine doesn’t work. Not to mention the dodgy plug sockets” Jenson remarked, adjusting the collar of his shirt. Jenson was dressed quite smart for a party; wearing a light blue shirt with its sleeves rolled up to his elbows, paired with smart black trousers and shoes. _It’s almost as if he wants to make a good impression._ Seanagh returned seconds later and Jenson grinned from ear-to-ear when he saw her.

“Sorry about that, you both ready?” the two of them nodded and followed Seanagh out the door.

“Well I have to admit you both scrub up better than the rest of us. Those dresses look lovely on you both” Jenson smiled pushing the button for the lift.

“Hey Jenson! Stop chatting up the girls!” The three of them turned around to see Kimi Raikkonen walking towards them, a huge smile plastered on his face. _Kimi’s here? Oh God..._

“I wasn’t chatting them up” Jenson said defensively, adding a small chuckle for good measure. Once they arrived at the lobby there was a sea of people but Raven could only pick out one: Nico. He was standing by the door to the restaurant chatting to Lewis and Nicole, and he looked... perfect. A sudden wave of nerves rooted Raven’s feet to the floor, _I can’t do this._ Seanagh turned round and walked towards her.

“Hey, come on it’s just nerves and they are nothing to worry about” Seanagh said reassuringly.

“But...”

“Nope, no buts. What you are going to do is you are going to walk over to Nico and have dinner with him, yeah?” Raven nodded in response. “Okay, good now let’s go” Raven followed Seanagh until they had arrived at the restaurant. Raven felt the butterflies in her stomach grow with every step. Nico smiled once he saw her, and Raven very gladly returned the smile. To Raven, seeing Nico smile at her like that was the best feeling in the world.

*  *  *

Seanagh couldn’t help but smile once she saw Raven standing with Nico; they really did look perfect together. Lewis and Nicole left to go to the party, but Kimi had left way before that; after all it was his party.

“See you guys later!” Seanagh waved as she followed Jenson to the after party. She turned round and took one last look at Raven and Nico as they entered the hotel restaurant.

“Don’t worry I know Nico, he’s alright” Jenson patted Seanagh’s shoulder.

“Yeah I know” Seanagh replied once she and Jenson had reached the bar. Jenson ordered two beers when Sebastian (who must have arrived early since he was acting a little drunk) came over to speak to his fellow drivers.

“Hey! I’ll get those” He handed the bartender the money before Jenson could reach for his wallet. “So nice to see you both could make it” Sebastian smiled, taking a sip of his beer.

“Wouldn’t miss it, oh by the way Seanagh, I won’t throw you in the pool, I’m gonna let that one slide” Jenson grinned.

“Ha I should think so to, I mean who in their right mind would want to ruin such a beautiful dress” Seanagh blushed at that comment from Sebastian.

“Thanks. I think” Seanagh replied with a smile. Seb chuckled lightly at the younger drivers’ response.

“No problem, you did a good race today. Not bad for a rookie”

“Yeah, she did us proud” Jenson said clapping Seanagh on the shoulder. Seanagh blushed again as she wasn’t used to all this attention, especially from other drivers. Kimi joined the group a little while later; he chuckled lightly putting his arms round Seb and Jenson.

“Hey, fancy a dance?” Kimi asked Seanagh. “And it is my party, so it would be very bad manners for you to say no. I know what you British people are like” Kimi smiled, lightly hitting Jenson’s shoulder.

“Well, I guess I might as well dance with you then” Seanagh sighed and followed Kimi, leaving a confused Jenson and Sebastian behind her. _Raven’s so lucky she doesn’t have to put up with any of this..._

*  *  *

Raven smiled brightly as she finished her wine, her dinner date with Nico was better than perfect.

“Do you want another wine?” Nico asked.

“I’ll be alright; I might have a few drinks at the party. Thanks though” Raven replied.

“Not a problem” Nico waved over the nearest waiter and asked for the bill. “Yeah, just put it on my tab, thanks” Nico pulled up the sleeve of his jacket to look at his watch. “I think the after party’s still going on, if you want to go” Raven sighed, considering the invitation. She did want to spend more time with Nico, since she probably wouldn’t see him again until Silverstone, and Raven knew that Seanagh would be really annoyed if she didn’t turn up.

“Sure, I’d love to” Raven stood up shortly after Nico and linked her arm with his as they walked out of the restaurant. “Thank you for dinner, it was lovely”

“No problem, I don’t mind though. I enjoy spending time with you” Nico smiled and caused Raven’s cheeks to turn scarlet. They arrived at the pool party which had been going on for a while now; all of the drivers were still there as were the majority of the engineers from the other teams. Raven’s eyes darted to the dance floor where she saw Seanagh dancing with Kimi; that surprised her a lot. Nico then led her to join them. “I hope you don’t mind” Nico smiled, placing his hand on Raven’s waist.

“Not at all” She replied, placing her hand on his shoulder. The pair danced for a few minutes, and Raven couldn’t help but look into Nico’s green eyes. She sighed as she felt their heads getting closer, and closer, and their lips almost met when a drunken Sebastian Vettel stumbled into them. _Stupid Red Bull drivers..._

“Hey guys!!!” He shouted over the loud music. “Good to see you” He cheered, hugging them both. Kimi and Jenson came over to pull him away.

“Yeah Seb you go with Kimi... Sorry about him. He had a few too many” Jenson apologized on Sebastian’s behalf.

“It’s alright Jenson, it’s not your fault” Raven smiled. “We were going to the bar anyway” Jenson smiled and went to attend to Sebastian, since he looked to be trying to chat up Seanagh.

“Going to the bar are we?” Nico asked.

“Yeah if you want” Raven smirked and headed to the bar, Nico following close behind.


	9. The Morning After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The morning after the night before...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here's the follow up from the last chapter, I am hoping to have another chapter up on Sunday, depends if I get through my homework or not... anyway enjoy!

_Saturday 19 th March – Melbourne_

Jenson woke up the next morning with a massive headache, shots with Kimi are never a good idea; he really should know that by now. Jenson rolled over and picked up his phone from the bedside table to check the time; attempting to rub the sleep out of his eyes. 10.15 In the morning. Jenson had missed breakfast and had to be out of his hotel room in forty five minutes. _What a great start to the day._ He thought sarcastically, hauling himself out of bed. The throbbing in his head seemed to increase once he sat himself up. _That’s it, no more shots with Kimi._

Jenson looked round his room with a sigh; roughly half of his clothes he had packed were strewn all over the floor, and his various team shirts were among them. Jenson frowned, running his hand through his dark blond hair. The downside of having two race weekends one after the other was the fact that you had less mental preparation for the next race, and there wasn’t the opportunity to go back to the factory to get in some simulator time.

Jenson sighed, falling back until his head met the soft pillow; he sighed looking up at the ceiling and smiled. He couldn’t have asked for a better start to the season; a podium finish. A wide grin replaced the smile that was there before as his mind went back to yesterday. Just then his phone buzzed, bringing him back to his hotel room; Jenson picked it up and saw that he had got a text.

 _‘Hey, where were you at breakfast? Martin was looking around the entire hotel for you’_ Jenson began to type a reply to Seanagh’s text.

_‘I slept in, no thanks to Kimi. Send my apology to Martin’_

_‘No worries, Martin says you’ve to get into the lobby on time. Or there will be trouble (his words not mine!)’_

_‘Haha see you then’_ Jenson locked his phone after checking the time; 10.30. Great now he only had half an hour.

*  *  *

About thirty minutes later Jenson had somehow managed to re-pack his suitcase and was leaving his hotel room wheeling his case behind him with his backpack slung over his shoulder with dark sunglasses over his eyes.

‘ _Tell Martin I’ve just left my room, I’ll be down in a couple of minutes’_ Jenson hit send on his third text of the day to Seanagh. Moments later he got a reply.

_‘Done. He says you’ve to hurry up’_

_‘Well tell him I’m in the lift!’_

_‘He’s let you off the hook (just this once) and I’m not your messenger!’_ Jenson chuckled reading his team mate’s reply, getting a funny look from the old lady in the lift.

_‘Sorry, it won’t happen again’_

_‘That’ll be right...’_ Jenson put his phone back in his pocket once the lift had reached the lobby; which was almost completely empty, meaning that the majority of the teams had left the hotel and were already at the airport. Martin was standing at the reception desk waiting for him while Seanagh was standing with Raven and McLaren’s technical chief Tim Goss; she had a pair of large sunglasses balanced on the top of her head, her dark brown hair falling in elegant curls down her back.

“Morning Jenson, I’m going to let this one go but don’t turn up late again. Got it?” Jenson handed Martin his hotel key, who handed it to the receptionist.

“Yeah, sorry Martin” Jenson replied, taking off his sunglasses.

“It’s alright, just make it a onetime thing” Martin muttered, Jenson let out a sigh of relief as he walked over to join Seanagh and Tim.

“Morning, good to see you could finally join us” Seanagh smirked. “You couldn’t be a little earlier in Malaysia could you? I’m not your personal carrier pigeon” Jenson laughed in response to Seanagh’s comment.

“I didn’t realise that sending a couple of messages to Martin made you a carrier pigeon”

“Yeah whatever” Jenson looked over toward the reception desk where Martin was stood, having a small chat with the hotel manager. A few minutes later Martin had ended his conversation with the manager and Jenson was in the car heading to the airport with Martin, Tim and Seanagh; his stomach growled loudly and Jenson put his hand on his torso to try and trap the noise.

“We’ll try and fix you up with some breakfast at the airport” Martin – who was currently on his phone – turned his head to face the back of the car.

“Thanks Martin” Jenson’s stomach growled again, but this time a little louder. Jenson saw Seanagh smile out of the corner of his eye as she pulled something out of her bag.

“Here, I think it might help” Seanagh smiled handed him something wrapped in a couple of napkins form the hotel restaurant. “I snuck these out at breakfast, I thought that you would have needed something”

“You sure?” Jenson asked, unwrapping the napkins to reveal two croissants.

“Yeah, I’ll pick up something at the airport” Seanagh replied as her eyes were fixed on her phone screen. Jenson looked at the croissants in his hand, and his stomach growled again as if it knew that there was food nearby. He very happily tore a piece of the croissant and ate it.

“Thanks” He smiled weakly, wiping a few loose flakes of pastry from his face. Seanagh smiled brightly, and returned to looking at her phone. After knowing Seanagh for a few months, he found that he really liked her; not in a romantic way but as a friend. She was a nice girl, very kind and thoughtful, not to mention that she was a really good driver. McLaren probably found the latter the most important, but it’s always nice to have someone you got on with as a team mate.

It was another forty minutes before the car pulled up outside the airport, Martin got out first, Jenson quickly followed and Seanagh followed soon after. There were only two paparazzi guys at the airport, but there were a few fans  there as well; who Seanagh happily went over to speak to. Jenson looked over his shoulder to see what was going on; Seanagh hugged them all and thanked them for coming down to the race yesterday, and then proceeded to sign autographs and stand for pictures. She seemed to come out of her nervous shell just then, laughing and joking with the fans as if she had known them for years; even though she hadn’t. That was something the Jenson liked about her, well one of the things anyway.

Jenson joined the group and signed autographs, stood for pictures, answered questions; the usual. After a few minutes (and a couple of pictures with Martin) the group of five left after wishing the team luck for the rest of the season. Jenson loved meeting fans at races, if it wasn’t for them he’d probably be out of a job – he was certainly more than grateful. Since he was inside, Jenson reluctantly took off his sunglasses and squinted at the light that blinded him.

“That’s what you get for doing shots with Raikkonen!” Nico laughed, clapping Jenson between the shoulders. “You think that you would know better”

“Yeah, but what can I say, I was celebrating” Jenson defended himself as he approached the check in for their flight. He handed over his passport and tickets and waited before placing his large suitcase on the conveyer belt, and once that was done he made his way through airport security once the team was checked in. “This is something you’ll have to get used to, a lot of time in airports” Jenson sighed. “That and the jet lag”

“Yeah, you do a bit of travelling for F3, not as much as this though” Seanagh picked up her bag and jacket and followed Jenson into the departure lounge. “Never mind that, you need breakfast” The two drivers walked around for about five minutes before they found a cafe that was serving breakfast, and it wasn’t long before Jenson was focusing solely on his stomach. “So, what do you fancy” Jenson examined the menu in front of him; full English, bacon sandwich... and red velvet cake. _Too bad cake isn’t appropriate for breakfast. But bacon doesn’t sound bad._

“Hmm, I don’t mind the sound of a bacon sandwich. Oh and some tea would be lovely”

“No problem, go find a seat. I’ll be there in a minute” Seanagh approached the counter and returned with a bacon sandwich, two cups of tea and the last slice of red velvet cake which must have been for herself. “I won’t tell if you won’t” She smiled sweetly.

“I’m alright with that” Jenson added milk and sugar to his tea; suffice to say he was a very happy man right now. Jenson looked over Seanagh’s shoulder and saw Nico sitting by himself on his phone. “How come you’ve got cake?” Jenson asked halfway through his sandwich.

“Because I bought some, obviously” She replied, eating another forkful. Jenson looked down at his plate; he had two rashers of bacon just sitting there.

“Well, how about I give you these two rashers of bacon for the rest of that cake”

“In return for what?” Seanagh smirked. Jenson pondered for a moment.

“I will make you cups of tea at every race for... a month”

“The whole season”

“Up until summer break?”

“Done” Seanagh swapped their plates. Jenson had cake; he was happy. “Pleasure doing business with you Jenson” Jenson smiled, wiping some cream cheese frosting from the corner of his mouth.

“Hey guys, do you mind if I join you?” Jenson looked up and saw Nico standing next to their table.

“Sure, pull up a chair” Nico sighed and grabbed a chair from the nearest table and sat down, pulling out his phone; he stayed quiet after that, occasionally muttering something in German under his breath. That was the only thing he’d do apart from stare at his phone screen.

“What time is our flight?” Nico asked refusing to take his eyes off of his phone. Jenson shrugged and looked to his team mate for a response; Seanagh rolled her eyes with a laugh as she placed her handbag on the table. After a few moments she eventually pulled out her boarding pass.

“Quarter past two” She read off the card in front of her. Nico looked up; looking both startled and confused.

“What?” He asked.

“You wanted to know what time our flight was, it’s quarter past two”

“Oh, okay. Thanks” He them returned his attention back to his phone screen. Jenson was surprised at Nico’s behaviour – he had _never_ acted like this before.

“Well anyway I’ll be in duty free, I need to pick up a birthday present for Raven” Seanagh announced standing up, Jenson was tempted to join her and he was about to speak when Nico interrupted him.

“When’s her birthday?” He asked excitedly

“Twenty-first of April, I am cutting it a bit fine to be honest but-” She began, to only be interrupted by Nico.

“Can I come with you? Jenson, you can tag along if you want”

“Yeah sure, I need to get something for people back home anyway” Jenson sighed. _Did I really have a choice anyway?_ Nico bounded off at Jenson’s reply, leaving the two British drivers behind him lost for words at Nico sudden change of mood. Seanagh followed him and made her way to the many perfume bottles that were on display.

“All this perfume and I _still_ need to have a look through the nail polish” Seanagh sighed as she placed a bottle of some perfume that Jenson couldn’t identify back on the shelf.

“For Raven?” Jenson asked, trying to make sense of all the stuff around him, it had been a while since Jenson had willingly found himself in the perfume section of an Airport’s duty free.

“No, for me. Raven said that I should treat myself” Seanagh smirked. Jenson shook his head and began to walk away. “Where are you going?” She asked. Jenson turned around, speaking to Seanagh while walking backwards.

“Anywhere where I can feel manlier. I think all that smelly stuff has done something to me” Jenson smiled, stopping in his tracks.

“Yeah yeah, we both know you’re secretly in touch with your feminine side!”It was that comment that made Jenson’s cheeks turn a bright crimson and caused him to leave with half of the women who were in duty free stare at him as he left – including Seanagh, who was grinning from ear to ear.


	10. Race 2: Malaysia 2013

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter update, there may even be another one later on today, enjoy.

_Thursday 21 st March – Sepang International Circuit_

It was over; the ordeal of Seanagh’s first press conference was over. She now understood why the majority of the drivers hated them, a combination of boredom, being put on the spot, and a distinct lack of tea (the latter being Seanagh’s personal problem of a severe lack of tea here in Malaysia). But Seanagh wasn’t alone; all of the rookies had been in the press conference, and Seanagh had been sat next to Max, which didn’t hurt being with her fellow Brit.

“Well that was... fun”

“Max are you crazy?! That was anything but fun”

“I second that” Seanagh sided with Giedo about Max’s absurd comment.

“At least we weren’t the ones getting asked all the questions” Valtteri remarked, looking over at Seanagh. She had gotten the majority of questions from the journalists, something she did feel slightly guilty about, but in a way it was to be expected.

“It’s not like we were forgotten though” Jules added, with Esteban nodding in agreement. Seanagh whispered Jules a small thank you, and he smiled as if to say ‘you’re welcome’

“Oh well, see you guys later” Valtteri waved as he headed towards the Williams team building along with Esteban, who seemed strangely quiet.

“He’s acting a little quiet, or is that just me?” Seanagh asked Jules, Max and Giedo.

“Dunno, are all Mexicans like that?” The other three drivers shrugged as a camera crew seemed intent on following the four of them.

“They don’t leave us alone do they?” Jules murmured, taking a drink of his bottled water.

“Either that or it’s this one” Giedo clapped Seanagh on the shoulder. _He didn’t mean that in a bad way, did he?_ “Gotta go, bye guys” He edged his way out of the group and jogged over to someone in a Caterham uniform. Seanagh walked with Max and Jules until they arrived at the Marussia team building, leaving Seanagh on her own with the camera crew still following her until she was safely surrounded by her McLaren team mates. _I am never walking back from press conferences alone ever again, even if it is for just ten metres._

 *  *  *

_Sunday 24 th March_

There was still a little bit of tension lingering in the air on race day, Kimi had been given a three place grid penalty for blocking Nico in qualifying, which in turn promoted Jenson to seventh on the grid and Seanagh to ninth. Jenson was quite happy with that, given the slightly damp conditions on track; he could give winning a shot today, even if the car wasn’t exactly the greatest. But it could have always been worse.

*  *  *

The race was on lap fifty three, and Jenson was forced to retire due to a problem with one of the wheels, most likely due to the abysmal pit stop in lap forty four. And it did hurt considering he had led the race for a couple of laps, but Seanagh was still out on track in a comfortable sixth place. _She could do well with that, I hope._

*  *  *

“Okay Seanagh, Jenson’s had to retire due to a wheel problem, now we just want you to-” The team radio message was cut out by Seanagh spinning off track, and the commentators leapt in excitement at yet more drama.

_“She’s spun off! The McLaren of Seanagh Palmer has spun off track and beached it in the gravel and it looks like... she’s rejoining the track!”_

_“Unbelievable, most drivers would retire after that”_

_“Yes she was sitting in sixth place but she has now dropped back to eleventh, with three laps to go, can she pull it off and get back into the points?”_

*  *  *

Crossing the finish line Seanagh sighed in relief, she had managed to get back into the points after spinning off the track (it was ninth place, but points were points), something that made her feel quite proud of herself – minus almost having to retire the car. After the race debriefing she had went to go and see Jenson in the hotel, to ask him what had went wrong with his car.

“Something to do with the wheel, anyway have you heard about Seb and Mark?” Jenson asked.

“No... What happened?” Jenson raised his eyebrows and switched the TV on at just the right time.

“See, look” Seanagh watched the screen intently, the image was Sebastian and Mark battling it out for first place, but Christian Horner didn’t sound too pleased.

_“This is silly Seb, come on”_

_“Right Mark he has been told”_

“Told? Told what?” Seanagh looked over at Jenson, who pointed at the TV, and the two Red Bull’s had been replaced with the two Mercedes cars, before cutting to Seanagh’s dramatic spin off – she turned away at that point.

“Good recovery of that, ah here we are” Jenson was fast forwarding the TV and had stopped it just before the drivers went on the podium; Mark looked pissed off, Lewis was standing in the corner, and Sebastian was facing away from Mark, drinking a bottle of water.

 _“Multi 21 Seb, Multi 21”_ Seanagh’s eyes widened, she knew what that order meant, car number two finishes in front of car number one, and given the look on Mark’s face...

“Did he actually disobey that team order?” Seanagh asked as Jenson turned off the TV.

“Yeah, there was a whole thing with Mercedes as well, so if you see Nico or Mark don’t ask them about it”

“Right...” Seanagh paused standing up “I best be off” She headed towards the door to head back to her own room.

“Alright, I’ll see you tomorrow, and I’ll be early this time” Jenson remarked as he opened to door for her.

“Good. I’m an F1 driver, not your personal carrier pigeon” She looked at Jenson with a small chuckle; he just rolled his eyes and looked at her.

“Yeah whatever, oh and well done for getting fastest lap”

“Thanks, bye Jenson!” She waved and headed in the direction of the nearest lift, when she arrived at the lift she ran into Mark and Nico, not the best people she could have ran into at that moment, they still looked pretty angry, especially Mark.

“God he’s such a... hey Seanagh!” Mark managed to see her out of the corner of his eye before he said anything. “How are you?”

“Um, not bad uh...”

“You don’t need to ask, it’s alright” Nico smiled weakly at her, tapping his foot. “It seems you had a good race today; the last three laps were very impressive”

“Yeah, you baffled a lot of people with that one” Mark nodded as the lift arrived; the three of them went in as Nico began pushing buttons.

“What floor are you?”

“Six” Seanagh replied. She felt a little awkward standing with Mark and Nico, she knew about what happened with him and Mercedes, talk about drama. “This is me, bye guys” Seanagh rushed out of the lift the second the doors opened and almost ran to her hotel room, she swiped her key card and looked down the hall to see Sebastian Vettel arguing with someone, some guy called Heikki. Rolling her eyes she opened the door and went inside, sighing with relief when she was finally in the comfort of her own hotel room.


	11. Race 3: China 2013

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A very special race, and an unexpected surprise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for lateness, it'll probably be Thursday before the next chapter is up (it would be sooner, but school work says otherwise), anyway, hope you enjoy the chapter.

_Sunday 14 th April – Shanghai International Circuit_

It was obvious to many that there was still a bit of tension hanging around after the eventful race in Malaysia a few weeks ago, and Sebastian’s little “I was faster, I won” speech didn’t help matters in anyway. Seanagh was glad that nothing like happened with her and Jenson, not that she was the type of person to disobey team orders. Sitting in the garage surrounded by her engineers they were finalising her race strategy, she was starting fifth on the grid on a set of prime tyres, there was a possibility that she might have been able to make a two stop work, with a second stint on the prime tyres before moving onto the options for the last fifteen laps. _It might work, maybe just maybe..._

*  *  *

“Box this lap Seanagh; we need to you box this lap for a set of options” Easing her car into the pitlane she could see cars zooming past her down the main straight. There was fifteen laps left of the race, and it was all to play for, and in a way, it was make or break.

*  *  *

She had never been so nervous in her life, she was clinging onto third place by the skin of her teeth, Hamilton was right behind her, and she was going to need a miracle to keep the position. Second last corner; he was right there, they were going side by side heading down the small straight into the last corner; Hamilton had gotten ahead, but with just a little bit of KERS left she crossed the line, but she couldn’t tell where she’d finished. _Please let it be third, please just let it be third._

“Seanagh that was a fantastic driver out there, you got third, your first podium finish, well done” She’d done it, by some form of miracle, she’d done it.

*  *  *

Seanagh stepped up onto the third step of the podium holding back her tears; she would never have imagined that she would have been on the podium on the third race of her career, she taken the car and done wonders with it, and her efforts had paid off.

She was presented with her trophy and held it up in the air, waving to the crowd, but most importantly to her team of engineers below her. She set her trophy down and picked up the heavy bottle of champagne that rested by her feet, popping off the cork she went over to the barrier and sprayed the champagne over her McLaren colleagues, before Kimi and Fernando came over and joined her, with Fernando almost getting champagne in her ear.

“I’m sorry about that” He laughed, changed his winner’s Pirelli cap for his Ferrari one.

“It’s alright” Seanagh smiled, taking the microphone that was handed to her, she was finding it increasingly difficult to hold back her tears, although she wasn’t entirely sure why she felt like crying. The post race interview started, Fernando saying it was a good and difficult race, Kimi being Kimi with his short and simple reply, and then the interviewer came over to Seanagh, and he felt the air almost freeze in her lungs.

“So Seanagh, this must be a great day for you, tell us, how are you feeling?”

“Uh...” It was hard to find the words to describe how she felt. “Today was a pretty good race, I certainly wasn’t expecting to be here, I really thought that Lewis was going to get me on the second last corner. For me this being my third race... it’s all very surreal, but I’m very, very happy with my result today”

“Fantastic, I’m not sure if you want to hear this but with this podium finish your are becoming – or have became – the most successful female F1 driver in the history of the sport, that must feel amazing for you”

“Yeah definitely, there was a lot of talk at the start of the year, a lot of doubt...” She paused, remembering all the press that surrounded her in February, nobody expected her to do well, a couple of points finishes and nothing much else. “But I’m glad that I’m able to show everyone that the women and cut it out at the front just as good as the men can, and it would be nice to get a win later on this year, but we’ll see what happens as the season progresses”

 Smiling at the crowd she headed back into the main circuit building, carrying her trophy and champagne in both her hands. Martin and Jenson greeted her outside the post race press conference.

“Seanagh you did it!” Jenson exclaimed, hugging her and lifting her up and spinning her round before gently placing her back on two feet. “Jense...” She giggled as Martin took her third place trophy and Pirelli hat.

“I’ll just take that off your hands...” Jenson grinned, taking Seanagh’s bottle of champagne off her as she headed into the press conference.

“Yeah, but I want that back!” Jenson laughed as he walked away, _yeah I’m not getting that back._

*  *  *

Raven was glad she had managed to make the race in China, she would have been kicking herself otherwise for missing Seanagh’s first podium finish, but she hadn’t which saved Raven a lot of apologies. Speaking of Seanagh, Raven hadn’t seen her since she arrived with her, she had disappeared when Jenson had asked her up to dance, and that was twenty minutes ago...

“Hello Raven” It the voice she didn’t want to hear, the one person she wanted to avoid.

“Hello Kimi” Raven tried her best to keep her eyes away from him, a replay of last year was something that Raven didn’t want to go through.

“You speak to me buy you’re not looking at me”

“I have my reasons” Raven gave a blunt reply as she knocked back the rest of her drink, contemplating leaving the party altogether.

“Really... come on Raven, you know you miss me” Kimi leaned down and whispered seductively into her ear, it was clear that he’d had one too many drinks, so Raven had decided to leave, sending a text to Seanagh in the hope that she’d understand. “Raven!” Kimi called after her, following her out of the bar and towards the lift. She got there first and pushed the button, hoping it would arrive before Kimi, like that was going to happen. “Raven please; come back to the party...”

“Kimi, whatever you want from me you’re not going to get it, when we broke up last year you made it very clear that-” Kimi cupped Raven’s face in his hands, softly kissing her as Raven simply melted into him. Despite trying to act strong Raven had missed having her ex-boyfriend around, she hadn’t been able to focus on anyone else. “K-Kimi...” Raven began, looking at Kimi who was smirking to himself.

“I think I saw Seanagh looking for you at the bar” Raven managed to walk away from the Finn, greeting Seanagh with a wide smile as Jenson bought them both drinks, with Raven trying to hide her kiss with Kimi under wraps, she only knew how Seanagh would react.


	12. An Unexpected Surprise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for lateness, school work has really been getting in the way of me updating this. But (as a nice little bit of compensation) I'll have another chapter up later on today.

_Sunday 9 th June – Montreal_

The last four races had been dismal, almost everything had gone downhill for McLaren since China, the car had lost the speed it had in the first three races. Before when McLaren were fighting for podiums, they were now fighting for points – a fight both Jenson and Seanagh had lost in Canada, a dismal eleventh and twelfth places, it left them wondering how bad they were going to do at their home race in just three weeks time.

*  *  *

Jenson was more than happy when he arrived back at the hotel, after a horrible race all he wanted to do was go to his hotel room and sleep, but his stupidly overactive brain meant he couldn’t. _Another sleepless night, great..._ He walked into the lift, slowly pressing down on the button for the fifth floor, resting his forehead against the cool metal wall in an attempt to calm himself. It didn’t work. Just as the lift doors were closing someone else got in the lift. Jenson sighed, turning round to see who it was.

“Hey” Jenson looked down, seeing Seanagh sitting on the floor by Jenson’s feet.

“Hey” She sounded deflated, she wasn’t the only one.

“What floor are you on?” Jenson asked, looking over at the various buttons by the lift doors.

“Same as you” Jenson nodded, looking at the glowing number five. Seanagh got to her feet and leaned against the wall, looking down at her feet. “I’m guessing you’re not going to the party then?”

“Nope” Jenson shook his head as the lift arrived on the fifth floor, slowly walking out Jenson realised they were both walking in the same direction. They arrived at Seanagh’s room and Jenson followed her in, sitting down on the sofa looking at the room service menu. “The pizza’s really good apparently, DC told me” Seanagh nodded, sitting next to Jenson.

“I’ll order, and you can pay me back your half, deal?”

“Sounds good to me” Jenson stood up and handed Seanagh back the menu, heading over to the kettle to make them both tea.

*  *  *

Seanagh had decided not to go to the after race party, sitting in her hotel room feeling sorry for herself felt like the better option. She couldn’t help but watch the race back, she wanted to see what she had done wrong, it didn’t make sense to her how she was on the podium in China, but was failing to get points in Canada, something didn’t quite add up. Jenson had left after staying for a couple of hours, he said that he wanted to have an early night, Seanagh on the other hand wanted to figure out what had gone wrong with her race before she went to sleep, there were so many factors, so many possibilities... A knock at the door, that pulled Seanagh back to reality fairly quickly, she hauled herself out of her bed and trudged toward the door, opening it she saw Raven who greeted her with a bright smile.

“Hey!” She looked as if she was dressed for the post race party “Aren’t you coming to the party?”

“Does it look like it?” Raven stepped in and Seanagh closed the door, heading back to her warm bed.

“Well no...” Raven followed her into the bedroom where Seanagh flopped down onto the bed, Raven looked at her feeling both confused and slightly concerned. “Are you alright?” Seanagh looked up at Raven rolling her eyes.

“Do I even need to answer that question?”

“Right...” Raven sighed sitting next to her friend. “I came here to tell you something, it might distract you, I hope”

“What is it?” Raven looked apprehensive, looking at Seanagh with a nervous smile. “Well?” Seanagh asked, hoping Raven would say her piece and leave.

“Promise me you won’t flip out, you’ll probably see it as a big deal” Raven began, nervously tapping her fingers against her leg.

“Just spit it out Rae” Seanagh sighed, resting her head against the soft pillow on her bed, Seanagh most likely wouldn’t see Raven’s news as a big deal, she had the tendency to dramatise some things.

“Kimi and me are back together” Sitting up Seanagh looked at Raven with wide eyes. _You have got to be kidding me._

“You’re what?!”


	13. A Shock Departure

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next chapter as promised, there will (hopefully) be another one up tomorrow.

_Thursday 27 th June – Silverstone_

The radio was turned up full blast as the girls sang along at the top of their lungs, but they had to stop singing along mid sentence as they had burst into fits of laughter. “Now this I have missed” Raven chuckled smoothing out her hair.

“Missed what?” Seanagh asked, adjusting her large sunglasses.

“Me and you, having our mandatory sing along before every race on the car ride over” Raven paused; the next part was harder to say. “I’ve missed having you around as well, F3 just isn’t the same without you” Raven looked over at her former team mate, it had only been a few weeks since she last saw her, but even then she still missed having her around.

“I’ve missed you too Rae, I mean I can’t have a conversation with Jenson about... well you know, the stuff that we talk about. It’s not the same, but at the same time, change is good you know” Seanagh smiled. “And, it would be right to congratulate you on your season so far” Raven blushed. She genuinely didn’t think that Seanagh was keeping track of the current Formula 3 season; she had always assumed that she’d be busy with F1.

“Oh well... thanks” The car slowed as they approached the first set of security gates, the girls flashed their passes and were let through. “So, do you know when you’re getting your company car from McLaren?” Raven asked, changing the subject completely.

“Yes... and no” Raven looked at Seanagh oddly, who laughed before continuing. “Martin said that I don’t get my car until I win a race, whenever that’ll be” Seanagh sighed, Raven looked at her sympathetically. Raven knew that Seanagh was having a good season so far; a pole position and one podium in China along with a few points finishes. But Raven knew Seanagh, and she knew how desperate Seanagh was for her first win, and all eyes would be on her for this weekend. But both girls knew that it was subject to be avoided, along with the other elephant in the room; Kimi. Raven knew she was annoyed about that whole Kimi thing, especially after what happened in Canada.

The car slowed for a second time as they approached the final security gates, Seanagh flashed her drivers access all areas pass and she drove through the gates and parked her car at the back of the McLaren motor home.  “Here we are, is this alright for you. The Louts motor home is just over there” Seanagh pointed to the black, red and gold building that was a few hundred metres away.

“Yeah... this will be fine” Raven paused. “Look Seanagh-”

“Raven, it’s fine honest. I really don’t mind” Raven didn’t know if Seanagh was referring to the lift, or Kimi, but Raven smiled anyway.

“Thanks” Raven smiled weakly, slowly getting out of the comfort of Seanagh’s car. She looked over at the Lotus motor home, sighing as she saw Kimi leaning against the wall waiting for her.

“You best be going then” Seanagh smiled zipping up her grey McLaren fleece and locking the car.

“Yeah... I guess. I’ll see you later, I was thinking that we could have lunch later; you know, if you’re free”

“Yeah sure” Seanagh replied, placing her hands in her pockets. “I’ll meet you here at around one?”

“Okay, see you later” Raven smiled at Seanagh as she left, heading towards the McLaren motor home when she ran into Jenson. They hugged briefly, and their hands unknowingly slid to each other’s waits before Jenson left, saying he had to go to the driver’s press conference.

“Morning Raven” He smiled, walking briskly past her, whilst at the same time speaking to his PR person. Raven waved back and walked over to the Lotus motor home to meet Kimi. Raven’s heels clicked along the tarmac and Kimi looked up from the screen of his phone.

“Hello Raven” Kimi hugged her, lightly kissing her cheek, a bright smile growing across his face. “Did you get here alright?”

“Yeah, Seanagh drove me over” Kimi’s jaw clenched upon hearing Seanagh’s name, things were still icy between the two of them.

“Oh, that’s nice of her” He replied, Raven was unable to see the look in his eyes through his shiny sunglasses. “Look about what happened a few weeks ago between me and her, I am very sorry”

“Look Kimi, what happened, happened. And I don’t want to talk about it”

“Okay” The pair stood awkwardly for a few moments, unable to think of anything to say. “You want coffee?” Kimi asked, putting on his usual Kimi smile.

“Yeah sure” Raven replied, taking Kimi’s hand as he lead her into the Lotus motor home, taking her straight to the canteen area for coffee. Raven sat down, playing with the hem of her purple skater dress as she waited for Kimi to return with her coffee. “Do you have much press today?” Raven asked once Kimi had returned.

“Uh, I have quite a bit, so I don’t know if I’ll be free for lunch”

“Oh okay, I was gonna have lunch with Seanagh anyway so that’s fine” Kimi simply nodded. Raven gulped, afraid to ask him the question she so desperately wanted to ask. “Look, is everything okay with you and her, I mean you both haven’t really been talking since...” She trailed off. “Well you know”. Kimi shrugged sipping his coffee.

“Yeah I mean everything’s fine; I even spoke to her in the hotel this morning. No big deal” Raven nodded in reply. She genuinely didn’t know what to say. Raven noticed that Kimi was looking over her shoulder, she looked at him confused. “I didn’t know that anything was going on with them”

“With who?” Kimi pointed over Raven’s shoulder, she turned round in her seat and saw Seanagh standing outside the McLaren motor home with Sebastian Vettel, talking and laughing as if no-one else was there. “Hmmm, they look... happy”

“Yeah... I’m pretty sure he likes her. And if he does he’s not really hiding it very well” Kimi said bluntly, finishing his coffee with a large gulp. “Any way I have to go and do press interviews, do you mind hanging around. If you want you can come and see me if I’m free” Kimi stood up and Raven shot up out of her seat.

“Yeah that’s fine, I’ll see you later” Kimi smiled and leaned into kiss her, he placed his hands on her waist and Raven wrapped her arms round Kimi’s neck. After a few moments, Kimi pulled away slightly breathless.

“Bye Raven” Kimi kissed Raven’s cheek and waved goodbye as he left the motor home, leaving Raven all by herself. She looked out the window; Sebastian and Seanagh were still talking, not paying attention to anything else. _There has got to be something going on with them._

*  *  *

Sebastian stood there smiling, he really didn’t care who saw; well maybe Britta would get annoyed, and Christian would get concerned if his number one driver was seen with the only single female driver on the circuit, it would certainly create a lot of talk, and Seb had enough talk about him this season. Yes, he regretted what he did in Malaysia, but it was a spur of the moment decision, something he was sure that he would regret for a long time. Sebastian sighed at the memory, running his hands trough his now short light brown hair. Mark was still pissed off at him and was taking every chance he took to have a go at his team mate; it was something that Sebastian just couldn’t get off his mind, although Seanagh did help, a little.

“So, looking forward to this weekend?” She asked sipping on her tea, how British.

“Yeah I guess, I mean I’ve had a good season so far” He paused, _does that sound like I’m rubbing it in? It does! Scheiße!_ “And the car is good so...” He trailed off, his mind somewhere else. For some reason Seb felt like he was (without meaning to) showing off how good a driver he was... Sebastian just wasn’t feeling himself this weekend.

“Are you alright Sebastian? You look a little pale. Perhaps you could do with a sit down” Seanagh looked at him concerned, the thoughts going through his head were enough to make anyone feel ill.

“Yes, yes. I feel fine really. There’s no need to worry about me” He looked at Seanagh, trying to read the expression on her face through her sunglasses. “Why are you even wearing those, it’s not even sunny” Sebastian looked up at the overcast sky. Seanagh sighed, talking off her sunglasses and placing them on her McLaren hat.

“That any better?” She joked, sipping on her tea again.

“I was just making a comment, I didn’t mean for you to take off your glasses” The German driver grinned in a friendly way as he sipped on his coffee, it was still too hot for his liking.

“Oh well, no harm done I suppose” She giggled, brushing hair out of her eyes as the breeze forced a few stray curls in front of her face. “Hey, aren’t you meant to be doing press just now?” She asked, tucking a strand of loose hair behind her ear.

“I could ask you the same question” Seanagh looked at him, the look in her eyes saying; _just answer the bloody question!_ “Turns out Mark wants to have his own press conference straight after the driver’s one, and before you ask I have no idea why. And why are you not there?”

“You mean at the drivers conference?” Sebastian nodded “I don’t know to be honest, Martin probably want me to do loads of press since it’s my first home grand prix, and the FIA might not have wanted both McLaren drivers on the panel, you know since it’s technically their conference” Seanagh shrugged “But I’ll probably do the next one in Germany, since I haven’t done a conference since... Spain I think”

“I guess that you’ll be surrounded by Germans then, but I’m sure you won’t mind”

“It’s nothing I can’t handle” Seanagh smirked, and Seb looked at her in shock.

 “I...” Seb had no words to say to her, he stood there in a stunned silence. Both drivers stood there, taking in each other’s appearance. All Sebastian could do was look at his rival driver (although it was weird to think of here in that way, since they had been having a perfectly normal conversation for the past ten minutes, that was however until it got awkward) and she was... attractive. But that was just stating a fact; almost every male employee in the paddock knew that. But to Seb she looked, he actually couldn’t describe her. “Maybe I should have a sit down” Seb sighed, sitting on the tarmac at Seanagh’s feet. “You know... I really envy you sometimes”

“Huh?”

 “I mean, you turn up to every race, do as many interviews as you’re allowed, and you just... act yourself, you don’t put on an image and you take every negative comment you get and somehow ignore it. How do you do it because... I’m really struggling” Seb continued, ignoring Seanagh’s previous statement. He looked up at her, begging for an answer. She sighed and crouched down to meet his gaze.

“That’s one of the things about being one of the very few women in a male dominated sport; you take what you get, no matter if they’re praising you, criticising you, saying that you don’t belong here... I’ve just learned to grow a pair and get on with it. A metaphorical pair of course” Sebastian chuckled, looking up at his fellow driver. “And you’re not doing that sitting outside the McLaren motor home having a moan to their number two driver” Seanagh stood up, and extended her hand to help Seb up off the ground. He nodded, and taking a firm grip of her hand he pulled himself up with so much force that he stumbled forward, unknowingly placing his hand on Seanagh’s waist for support so he didn’t fall over.

“Um sorry... I didn’t mean for that to happen” Seb dropped his hands by his side taking a few steps back, he then looked at his watch, sighing once he saw what time it was. “The press conference should be over by now; I think Mark’s doing his in half an hour. Oh I forgot to say, it’s been requested that all of the drivers attend, that was what I wanted to see you about, and if you see Jenson or anyone else will you tell them?” Seanagh nodded in reply. “Thanks see you then” Sebastian smiled, turning on his heel and walking away as quickly as he could, it was clear that he had outstayed his welcome, even if Seanagh was too polite to say so, well that was what Seb thought anyway. He sighed with relief once the blue building that was the Red Bull motor home was in sight; it even brought a small smile to Seb’s face. That was until he saw Christian standing by the door, clearly waiting for Sebastian’s return. It was a relief to Seb that Heikki was standing with him; at least Seb had some sort of support when Christian would most likely confront him about his tardiness. Seb took a deep breath, waiting for the shouting that would most likely come his way. He approached Christian with his eyes to the ground, desperate not to make eye contact with his boss. “Sorry I’m late back Christian” He sighed, sounding like a lost school boy.

“Not at all Sebastian, don’t worry about it. The press conference is in thirty minutes, could you show the drivers where they’re meant to be going when they arrive?” Christian asked Seb in the most normal, non-angry tone possible. This caused Seb to look up from his feet in shock.

“Um, y-yes of course. I can do that” He stammered. _Why am I not in trouble?  I’m half an hour late back._

“Great, see you inside” Christian smiled and left, leaving a very confused German at the door. Seb looked up at Heikki, who looked back at him with his usual expressionless face. He shook his head and walked into the motor home, with Sebastian following him like a lost puppy. Both men walked in silence until they were past the journalists that were beginning to gather in the hospitality area. It was only when they were in the safety of the authorized personnel area that they spoke.

“Where were you, I have been looking for you for the past forty five minutes”

“I... fancied a walk” Seb replied, placing his hands in his pockets.

“Long walk” Heikki replied, he was onto something already,

“Yeah, it’s a big paddock. Plus I got lost in a sea of British people” Seb tried to make a joke, Heikki wasn’t impressed. He didn’t believe him. _No don’t hand your reason over to him, like Seanagh said grow a pair!_

“Come on Seb, where were you really?”

“I told you, I was having a walk around the paddock, why does everyone need to know every single thing I’m doing!” Seb quickened his pace, desperate to get away from anyone wearing a Red Bull uniform; including himself, not the off circuit Sebastian but the new Sebastian that Red Bull had created. The one that just wins races and doesn’t care about the consequences... No, the one that’s not allowed to care about the consequences.  Sebastian had felt like he had been swallowed up by his job ever since he won Red Bull their first championship in 2010. Ever since then it was; keep your personal life separate from your work life, don’t give too much away in interviews, show personality in interviews, share a little bit of information about the team, just not too much, smile, be happy, be serious, be funny, be yourself, win all of the races... it was all getting too much for him, he was twenty five (almost twenty six) and he didn’t need this kind of pressure. It would explain why Sebastian just fainted in the middle of the corridor.

*  *  *

Sebastian had no idea how long that he had been out for, but what he did know that he had a pounding headache. He was lying on something hard, possibly the floor, either way it was cold, and it felt soothing on his warm skin. He let out a sigh, a small smile playing on his lips. This was the first time in months that Seb had actually felt like himself. Of course, this was short lived as Heikki and Britta came rushing over to Sebastian’s side, firing too many questions at once. Sebastian squinted his eyes looking through the bright lights at Heikki and Britta, attempting to push himself up from the floor.

“How long was I out?” He asked. Britta and Heikki looked at him surprised. “Well? How long was I out?” He repeated the question, still not getting a reply as Britta and Heikki looked at their boss like a deer in headlights. Seb shook his head, stumbling into the doors that lead to the Red Bull hospitality area. Sebastian tried to act normal as he tried to find the nearest seat, his head was spinning. Summer Break couldn’t come fast enough.

*  *  *

“Woah, easy there Seb! You nearly sat on me!” Jenson chuckled, gently pushing the younger German off of his lap. Seanagh was sat next to him, and was trying not to burst into fits of laughter. Sebastian looked at him flustered, before apologising – or hopefully apologising – in German. “Are you alright mate?” Jenson looked at him for a second time, Seb’s skin was pale, and beads of sweat were sticking to his forehead, he didn’t look well.

“Um, no. Not really” He sat down, looking at both of the McLaren drivers confused. “Wait, what are you doing here? How did you both get in?” He stood up, looking as if he was going to kick both British drivers out of the motor home.

“Mark’s press conference, you told me before that all the drivers had been requested” Seanagh looked at Seb concerned.

“Oh...” a look of realisation washed across Sebastian’s face as he sat down for a second time. His skin had paled even further; something was clearly not right with him. “Sorry I uh... am not quite feeling myself today”

“Yeah, I can see that...” Jenson paused, taking a look at his team mate. Her eyes were fixed on Sebastian, that was something that made Jenson feel... uneasy. And he didn’t know why. “Do you think you’ll be alright to race or-”

“No I’ll be fine, I just need some rest that’s all” Sebastian looked at his watch, sighing at the time. “Um the conference starts in five minutes, I can get you some drinks and then I’ll take you through if that’s alright?” Jenson and Seanagh both nodded got out of their seats and followed Sebastian to the bar. “What do you guys want?”

“Tea” Both Jenson and Seanagh replied simultaneously, Jenson smirked and Seanagh let out a small laugh; they knew each other too well. Jenson watched as Sebastian ordered the drinks, leaning on the bar.

“Seanagh, can you get some sugar please?” He asked with an undertone of concern in his voice.

“Yeah sure” She turned and left, leaving Jenson and Seb alone. Jenson sat on the stool next to Seb examining his appearance. He certainly looked worse than he did this morning.

“Seb, what’s wrong?” He refused to answer. “Mate, it’s not good to keep things like this bottled up, you don’t want to blow at the wrong point” Sebastian stayed silent, but he looked as if he was considering Jenson’s previous statement.

“I’ll tell you later, when there’s none of this” He waved his hands, referring to the world’s media that had descended like hounds on the Red Bull motor home, all of them itching to hear Mark’s news.  Jenson nodded, patting Seb on the back as Seanagh returned with three sachets of sugar.

“Thanks” Jenson picked up two of them, tapping them on his knee. A few moments later, three cups were places in front of the drivers; Seanagh smacked her palm against her forehead, she turned to leave but Jenson placed his arm out in front of her, blocking her path.

“It’s alright, I don’t take sugar in my coffee” Sebastian replied. Jenson picked up both teas and handed one to Seanagh, who was still standing right next to him. The tips of her fingers gently brushed against Jenson hand as he handed her the steaming hot cup of tea. She smiled, whispering a small thank you that only Jenson could hear. _Jenson, she’s off limits..._ That was what Jenson had been telling himself for the past few weeks, but right now he couldn’t keep his eyes off her. “I’ll take you guys through now of you want” Seb looked at Jenson and Seanagh, his eyes darting between the two of them.

“Yeah sure, lead the way” Jenson jumped down off the stool and followed Sebastian, who held the door, open for him. Jenson stopped, looking over his shoulder as Seanagh unexpectedly brushed past him.

“Cheers mate” her black heels clicked along the hard floor as Jenson had to jog to keep up with her. Jenson sighed, eventually finding the only free seat in the conference room, in between Seanagh and Nico. The room was filled with quiet murmurs between the drivers and the press, the whole room was dark apart from the illuminated area at the front of the room; there was a single large desk with one microphone sat right in the middle. Then silence fell across the room as Mark sat down in front of the microphone, speaking with a lump in his throat.

“Good morning everyone, it’s uh, nice to see all of you here today. Good to see all of the drivers could make it” He nodded at the two rows of seats in front of him, all the remaining drivers had turned up to the conference. “I guess I’ll keep my announcement brief, and I’ll answer questions later but, I would like to announce that this weekend’s British Grand Prix will be my last as I will be retiring from Formula 1 at the end of this season” The room descended into chaos, questions were being fired at Mark left, right and centre, where as the drivers looked at Mark shocked. Jenson’s jaw had dropped, he had known mark since he had first started F1 and they had been friends for a long time, 11 years in fact. Once the initial shock had passed, Jenson finally came to the important conclusion. Mark was leaving, leaving an open seat at Red Bull, and it was coming up to the infamous talk of driver’s contracts. Silly season was starting up again for another year.


	14. The Unexpected Guest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next chapter, chapter 15 will be up tomorrow.

_Friday 28 th June –Santander British Grand Prix - Free Practice 2_

Seanagh let out an exasperated sigh. Both free practices had not gone her way. She pulled her balaclava off her head, stuffing it inside her helmet and handing it to Vanessa, who placed it on the shelf. Martin walked over, patting her on the back.

“Hey, P14 is still good. We can work on it tomorrow”

“I’m sorry Martin, I know that I could have done better” She sighed, undoing her ponytail and placing the hair bobble round her wrist. Martin placed his hand on her shoulder

“You’ll do fine, just speak to the engineers. You know what to do, you’ve done it before” Martin left to go speak to Jenson. Seanagh sighed, tapping her nails on the shelf before turning to speak to her team of engineers. _You can do it again Seanagh, just like China._ Seanagh’s memories from the Chinese Grand prix were imprinted into her brain, her performance in free practice on the Friday was not good, but somehow she got the fastest lap in the third free practice on Saturday, ended up fifth on the grid in qualifying, and finished third giving Seanagh her first podium of the season. Of course this weekend was different, Seanagh’s home Grand Prix.

“Right guys, what needs doing” She asked, standing next to Michael – her race engineer.

“Well...” he pointed at the screen “If you look here just as you were coming up to Vale, something happened with the rear tyre and it jerked, that’s what made you go wide”

“Yeah, I think I locked up the right rear, then for some reason I went like that” Seanagh paused, mimicking the movements she did on the steering wheel “To try and make sure that I didn’t miss the chicane, but then as you see I went wide” Michael nodded.

“Yeah, now that’s good thinking but you know...”

“That you can still turn during a lock up, yeah I know I just... forgot. Rookie mistake” She shook her head looking down at her feet; Seanagh was determined to do well, she didn’t want to let herself, or the fans down.

“Don’t beat yourself up about it, you can fix it” Seanagh nodded. _Yeah I can, and I’m going to do everything that I can to do it..._

*  *  *

It was roughly half past six when Seanagh finally left the McLaren garage, she had worked through her lunch break (a decision that she regretted since she was now starving). Seanagh picked up her handbag out of her locker and left the motor home, heading towards the exit barriers. It was only when Seanagh reached the car park that she remembered that she got a lift in with Jenson this morning, and that he had left about half an hour ago. And she couldn’t ask Raven for a lift, because her car was back in London.  Since it was the home race, Seanagh was staying in her flat with Raven, and Jenson was staying in the spare room. And if Seanagh were to call any of them it would be almost two hours before anyone would arrive. Seanagh threw her head back; this day could not get any worse.

“Hey, are you alright?” Seanagh jumped as Sebastian gently placed his hand on her shoulder.

“Oh, hi Sebastian” She smiled weakly at the German, who looked at her with the same smile. “Yeah I’m alright; I’m just... having transportation issues”

“Didn’t you get a lift in the Jenson this morning?”

“Yeah I did, but he left half an hour ago, and Raven left ages before that so...” Seanagh paused looking at Sebastian. He seemed to have some form if idea forming in his mind.

“Well, I can drive you home if you wish”

“Oh no Sebastian I-”

“Really I insist it’s only fair” Sebastian smiled, looking right into Seanagh’s eyes.

“Okay fine, you win” Seanagh sighed throwing her hands up in the air, following Sebastian to his car. “So... which car is yours?” She asked, looking at each of the expensive sports cars they passed.

“This one” Seanagh looked at the white Infiniti car that Sebastian had pointed to.”It’s my company car”

“Nice” Seanagh remarked as Sebastian unlocked the car. She opened the back door, and threw her bag onto the back seat; she looked up seeing Sebastian holding open the front passenger door for her.  “Um, thanks” She slid into the car and sat down on the black leather seat. _This is much nicer than the car I’ve got just now..._ Seanagh looked around, taking in the appearance of the interior. Sebastian got in the other side of the car, glancing at Seanagh before shutting the door. “This is weird; I’m sitting on the wrong side of the car!” Sebastian chuckled started the ignition.

“Well you British people are the weird ones, driving on the left. Not many people do that” Sebastian looked over his shoulder, reversing his car out of its space. He spun the car quickly, making Seanagh jump as the car sped out of the car park. “Too fast for you?” He smirked, looking over at the British driver.

“Not at all, I just wouldn’t recommend breaking the speed limit, that’s all” Seanagh took off her McLaren hat, running her fingers through her hair. Seanagh couldn’t decide if Sebastian was just being friendly, or if he was flirting with her again, just like he had done in China, and Spain, and Canada...

“Wait... have you had dinner yet?”

“Uh...” Seanagh’s stomach rumbled, causing the both of them to laugh.

“I guess not” Sebastian laughed.

“Its fine, I’ll get something when I get home”

“Are you sure? Because it’ll be about eight o’clock before you get home, considering the traffic’s good”

“Yeah, which will be fine; it’s very sweet of you to be concerned Sebastian but-” 

“Seb”

“What?” Seanagh asked, looking over at the German.

“You can just call me Seb, the majority of people do. And you’ve known me for a while now so...” He paused, looking directly at her. “I don’t mind”

“Fine then _Seb,_ it’s very kind of you to be concerned about me but, I’m perfectly capable of looking after myself” Sebastian raised his eyebrows, his eyes fixed on the road.

“Fair enough” The majority of the car journey remained in silence, with the two drivers only speaking when it was required; with Seanagh giving Sebastian directions when they reached the outskirts of London.

“I said left!”

“Sorry, I got confused. I’m not good in traffic!” Seb smacked his hands against the steering wheel, looking round attempting to find a way back onto the street that he was meant to go down.

“It’s fine, just go left here” Sebastian did as he was told, turning left. “Then take the second right” Again, he did as he was told and took the second right. “And then left here” The car turned left, and Seanagh sighed with relief when she saw Jenson’s car parked outside her apartment.

“Where will I park?” Sebastian asked.

“Just behind that car” Sebastian parked the car behind the orange McLaren, sighing with relief as he turned off the ignition. “Thanks for the lift”

“Not a problem”

“Hey, do you fancy coming in for a drink, I feel bad making you drive all of this way” Seanagh looked over at Sebastian, he looked better than he did yesterday, but the stress he had just undergone had made him look... not quite himself.

“Yeah, that would be lovely” He forced a smile as he got out of the car, following Seanagh up the steps to her apartment. “Wait!” Seanagh stopped in her tracks; she looked over and saw Sebastian holding out a red hat. “You forgot your hat” Seanagh took it from his hands, but he held onto it; walking up the steps until he was millimetres away from her.

“Thanks”

“You’re welcome” Seanagh kept her eyes locked on Sebastian as she buzzed the intercom for her apartment.

“Hey, about time you showed up!” Jenson’s voice crackled through the intercom, making Goosebumps form along the back of Seanagh’s neck.

“Yeah sorry about that, I decided to stay a little longer, plus I got stuck in traffic. Look can you just buzz me in, it’s starting to rain!”

“Yeah, yeah fine!” A loud buzz rang in Seanagh’s ear as Sebastian pushed the door open.

“Ladies first” Seanagh brushed past Seb, not breaking eye contact with him until they were in the lift. _Great, first Jenson, now Sebastian._

*  *  *

Jenson sighed placing a bowl of pasta in the microwave. He didn’t even know who made it, but it tasted good and that was fine by him, and hopefully fine by Seanagh. Jenson still didn’t know what he was going to do about her yes, Jenson could admit that he liked her, but she was his team mate, but she was so funny, had a great personality, and the most beautiful smile...

“Jenson! For the tenth time let me in!!” Jenson was brought back to reality by the loud banging on the door, and Seanagh’s voice swiftly following it.

“Sorry, sorry I was...” Jenson paused opening the door, Seanagh had walked in, and Sebastian had followed. “...just distracted” _What is Sebastian doing here?_ The microwave had beeped in the kitchen, taking Jenson’s attention yet again; Seb had sat down on the large sofa, while Jenson went into the kitchen, gesturing for Seanagh to follow him. She closed the door behind her, looking up at him confused.

“You didn’t tell me that Seb was coming up” Jenson whispered trying to sound like he wasn’t jealous.

“Yeah sorry, it was last minute and I forgot to call. Seb gave me a lift up, and he’ll be gone once he’s had a coffee” Of course, Jenson forgot that Seanagh could see through any failed attempt at hiding jealousy.

“You could have called me; I would have picked you up” He muttered, just loud enough for her to hear.

“Yeah I know but... I didn’t want to cause a fuss, that’s all”

“What makes you think that you would have caused a fuss?”

“I don’t know I just...” Seanagh trailed off, brushing past Jenson to take her bowl of pasta from the microwave. “Is that Seb’s coffee? If it is I’ll take it through” Jenson nodded silently, handing Seanagh the mug. _So she’s just calling him Seb now?!_ Seanagh walked through into the living room, and Jenson followed once he had made his tea; he sat down on the corner of the large sofa, making himself comfortable as he took a large sip of his tea.  

“Thanks for the pasta Jenson” Seanagh smiled warmly at him, making everything feel better.

“Not a problem, I found it in a big Tupperware box in the fridge and I had some for dinner, I hope you don’t mind”

“No not at all, it’s there for eating so really it’s not a problem...” She paused, looking at the TV. “Do we have to watch free practice?” She whined, going to pick up the TV remote from the table, which Jenson grabbed before she could reach it.

“Yes. If you want to learn what you did wrong then you just need to watch it over and over again until you figure out what you did” Seanagh huffed, leaning back and stuffing forkfuls of pasta into her mouth. Sebastian left a few minutes later, Jenson felt bad about completely ignoring him now. But the damage had already been done.

“Right I’m off to bed, night Jenson!” Seanagh called from her room upstairs.

“Night!” Jenson called back, curling up in the tick duvet that lay on top of him. He sighed, staring at the clock on the bed side table, it was half past ten, and Jenson was staying in his team mate’s flat, the team mate that he undeniably had a crush on, and the same team mate that hitched a lift with Sebastian Vettel. _Maybe tomorrow will be better..._


	15. An Argument and A Kiss

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next chapter, hope you guys enjoy it. Next one should be up tomorrow night (hopefully).

_Saturday 29 th June – Santander British Grand Prix, Qualifying_

“You’ve done it Seanagh, P1. P1!!” Seanagh crossed the finish line, the last car to do so. And she had done enough to get pole position at her home grand prix; she had managed to turn it around _just_ like she did in China.

“Thanks boys, we really managed to turn it around. Let’s see if we can turn it into a win for the home crowd” Seanagh cheered on the team radio as she waved to the fans she passed in the grandstand. This was by far one of the best days of her life, and driving into the first chicane she was sure that she heard the cheers of the crowd over the engine...

*  *  *

From Jenson’s point of view, today was no better than yesterday. His fourteenth home grand prix and the best he could do was qualify eleventh. _No chance of a podium this weekend then..._ The cars from Q3 were beginning to make their way through to parc ferme for the drivers to get weighed, and for the top three to get their pictures taken for the press. And not matter how hard Jenson had tried to be annoyed at Seanagh; he was over the moon for her. Her car halted to a stop along with Nico’s Mercedes and Sebastian’s Red Bull, Seanagh jumped out of the car and ran to her team of engineers, she was ecstatic. And before Jenson knew it he was jogging along to where her car was to congratulate her, but Seb had gotten there first. So Jenson ended up congratulating Nico instead.

“Well done mate, you did good out there”

“Oh thanks man, um...” Nico’s smile faded, he clearly knew that Jenson didn’t get into Q3, but he didn’t want to say anything.

“Hey, it’s alright” Jenson smiled weakly, this weekend just wasn’t going his way.

“Jenson I didn’t see you, I’m sorry about Q2” Seanagh hugged him, partially in celebration and partially in sympathy. Just then Sebastian tried to pull Seanagh away, saying something about the driver’s photo.

“You should be going” Jenson looked at Seb coldly before turning to leave. His day was getting worse, and he wanted to blame it on Seanagh, but he couldn’t find it in himself to do so; so instead, he blamed himself. Jenson walked back to the McLaren garage as fast as he could; want to get away from everyone. But he knew that it would be impossible to do. Once in his garage he looked over his shoulder, Seanagh was standing in between Nico and Seb, smiling and cheering like nothing else in the world mattered. But it was seeing Sebastian pull Seanagh into a close hug that did it; Seb was smiling, whispering something into Seanagh’s ear before kissing her cheek. Jenson clenched his fists, strongly resisting the urge to punch the nearest wall. _Yeah, today’s definitely not my day._

*  *  *

Nico walked into the hotel feeling very pleased with himself, he had qualified second, behind Seanagh, but most importantly in front of Vettel. In the hotel lobby he saw Kimi with Raven, making his heart drop to his feet. Her smile, her perfect eyes... Nico gulped, running into the nearest lift as fast as he could, he had to get away from her, and it was either that or become a crying mess in the hotel lobby, not really good for anyone’s public image. Once the lift had arrived on Nico’s floor, he saw a few of the drivers crowding round one of the hotel room doors, it had to belong to one of the other drivers, it was the only sensible explanation. Nico caught Lewis’ eye in the crowd, and he approached him silently.

“What’s going on?” He whispered.

“Sounds like Jenson and Seanagh are having a bit of a lovers tiff!” Lewis smirked, trying not to laugh. Although Nico didn’t want to know what was going on, he stayed. It was betting than sitting in his hotel room all by himself.

“So you’re jealous is that it?!” Seanagh exclaimed, loud enough to be heard through the door.

“What?! No, of course not!” Jenson replied.

“Really, I saw the way you looked at me and Seb when we were getting our picture taken. You were livid!”

“So what if I was, he’s just...”

“What? He’s just what?!” Silence followed, Nico’s feet were glued to the floor.

“He... he’s trying to get into your head, so you won’t pose a threat to him in the championship” Jenson stammered.

“Ohh I see... you have one bad performance in qualifying so you decide to take it out on someone else. I just...ugh!” Seanagh’s footsteps grew louder as she approached the door. Everyone tried to scatter but it was too late as Seanagh was already half way down the corridor. Nico looked up and saw Jenson looking down on him and the rest of the drivers.

“You might as well come in then, since you heard the whole thing” Nico and Lewis stood up, and were the only ones to accept the invitation, everyone else had left. Jenson shut the door behind them, slumping on the sofa, letting out a loud sigh.

“What happened there?” Lewis asked, sitting next to him.

“I think you can come to your own conclusion, _mate_ ” Jenson spat out the last word, pouring himself a small glass of vodka, which Nico took away before he could drink it. Jenson rolled his eyes, ruffling his hair as he spoke. “I overreacted really; I just thought that... god I’m so stupid!”

“Easy there, start from the beginning”

“Well... Seanagh left the garage late last night, and I was supposed to be giving her a lift back to her flat, but I forgot and left half an hour before she did. So, she got a lift up with Seb. And she turned up with Seb and they looked... like something was different with them, you know?” Nico and Lewis looked at each other, before looking at Jenson bemused. “And Nico, you saw them just now, hands all over each other, Seb whispering things into her ear. I just thought that she was hiding something from me, and well... I wasn’t feeling too good because I did shit in qualifying and now... Seanagh’s fallen out with me” After a lot of pacing Jenson sat on the floor, with his back to the wall. Nico stayed silent, trying to process Jenson’s story, _was he jealous... of Seb?!_

“Well... it’s no good taking it out on your team mate man; you know that as much as I do” Lewis sat opposite Jenson, patting his shoulder.

“Yeah, you just haven’t had a good weekend so far, she’ll understand if you go talk to her” Nico chimed in, now leaning against the door. Lewis stood up, saying he had to leave because he promised Nicole he’d take her out tonight, this left Nico alone with Jenson, allowing him to ask Jenson what he had known for quite a while. “Jenson... you really like her don’t you?” The reply was silence, and a very judgemental glare from the Brit.

“Yeah... I don’t know maybe... is it that obvious?” He asked, looking at Nico.

“Considering the argument you just had... yeah it is” Nico sighed, smiling a little.

“I can’t help it, it’s just ever since China she seems... different. Like good different, you know what I mean right?”

“Jenson, you should tell her, before she goes off with the wrong man”

“What, Nico that’s crazy. I’m not in love with her. It’s just a crush... it’ll pass. It will pass won’t it?” Jenson asked Nico, looking almost desperate. Nico wanted to say yes, that it would pass and Jenson would come out unscathed... but the same thing happened to Nico in Australia... and he hadn’t been the same since.

“Yeah... you’ll be just fine”

*  *  *

Seanagh stormed out of the hotel building desperate for fresh air and to get away from Jenson. She walked around the grounds through the various hotel gardens attempting to clear her head. After a while Seanagh found herself in some form of hedge maze as the sun was beginning to set, she walked round trying to find her way out. It was a good distraction from her argument with Jenson; that was until she ran into Sebastian.

“Well... this is an unexpected surprise” He smirked; Seanagh glared at him before turning on her heel and walking in the opposite direction. “Wait... hang on a minute” Seanagh broke into a run, desperate to get away from him, she turned a corner and ran into Sebastian, the force at which she hit him making fall to the ground. “Oh, I’m sorry” Seb tried to help her up, but Seanagh refused pushing herself up from the ground. Her head was spinning, and it felt like her nose was bleeding but she wasn’t sure.

“Just... get away from me!” She exclaimed turning and walking away. But the German was persistent as he stood in front of her, blocking her path.

“What have I done wrong?” He asked. “Is this about yesterday? ... Or is it about Jenson?” Just hearing his name hit a nerve.

“I said, get away from me!” Seanagh pushed Seb into the nearest hedge, walking past him back towards the hotel.

“Just tell me what I did wrong then I’ll leave you alone!” Sebastian blocked Seanagh from leaving for a second time. This was the final straw.

“Sebastian you have ten seconds to get away from me before I-” She was cut off by Sebastian’s lips crashing onto hers. Seanagh grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, but she couldn’t push him away. _Just this once, then it’s done._

“I guess this isn’t about Jenson, because if it was then you wouldn’t have kissed me” Seanagh rolled her eyes, walking away. “So what, we kiss and you just leave me here?!” Seanagh began to think about what Jenson had said before, about Sebastian trying to get into her head, something was telling her that he could be right... but then she remembered that she was meant to be pissed off with him. So she went back, slapped Sebastian in the face and stormed off back to the hotel, attempting to from some kind of apology to Jenson in her head.

*  *  *

Jenson began pacing his hotel room, again. Trying to think up a good apology, but he wasn’t going to tell Seanagh about how he felt, if Nico said he’d be fine, then he’d be fine. All his feelings for Seanagh would be gone by the end of the season, and that was that. A quiet knock on the door brought Jenson to a halt; he took in a deep breath and opened the door, seeing Seanagh on the other side.

“Can I come in? I need to speak to you” Jenson nodded, letting her in. He shut the door quietly, hoping a crowd of drivers wouldn’t swarm round the door like they did half an hour ago. “Look Jenson, I am so sorry about what happened. I should have been more... considerate”

“No I’m the one who should be sorry, I took it all out on you when I really shouldn’t have done” That wasn’t the apology that Jenson had worked on, but it seemed good enough.

“Well then, are we... good?” Seanagh asked hesitantly, looking up at her team mate.

“Yeah I’d say so” Jenson nodded, smiling awkwardly before pulling Seanagh into a hug.

“Shouldn’t we be getting down to dinner?” Seanagh asked, Jenson looked at his watch and saw that it was five to eight.

“Yeah, Martin wanted us down at eight” Jenson stood up picking his keycard from the coffee table. “You coming?” He asked as he held to door open, noticing that the Red Bull team had just past the open door.

“Yeah, let’s go” Seanagh walked out the door and waited for Jenson before walking with him to the lift, she looked as if she had something on her mind, but Jenson thought it best not to ask since he didn’t want to fall out with her again. _Still, it’s probably nothing..._ Jenson had no idea how wrong he was. 


	16. Race 8: Britain 2013

_Sunday 30 th June – Santander British Grand Prix_

Sebastian cursed in German as he got out of the car; he knew this retirement would affect the championship table, giving Kimi and Fernando a good shot at first place. Still, on the upside it was a short walk back to the pitlane, since he had stopped right by the pit wall. Sebastian looked over his shoulder as the safety car zoomed past, along with the other twenty cars that were still in the race, from what he had heard, Jean-Eric Vergne had retired on lap thirty due to puncture damage on his car – it looked like Pirelli had another hard press day on their hands. Sebastian was happy – to an extent – once he was back in the Red Bull garage, once inside he placed his helmet on the shelf and was handed a headphone and microphone set. Seb looked up at the nearest screen and saw Kimi take the lead as Nico (Rosberg), Mark and Fernando all pitted for new tyres, whilst Seanagh was all the way back in eighth. Sebastian had felt bad about what had happened between him and Seanagh yesterday, but he hoped that he could get everything between them fixed before the Grand prix in Germany, however long it would take.

*  *  *

Nico grinned as he stepped onto the top step of the podium; he won, he had actually won the British Grand Prix.  

“And now, the German national anthem” Nico beamed with pride as the German national anthem – his anthem – boomed through the speakers. His eyes surveyed the crowd; fans were beginning to gather around the podium, cheering and waving flags from many different countries (although the majority of them were Union Jacks). Nico attempted to fix his hair as the soft summer breeze wafted through the circuit. As the German anthem drew to a close, Nico punched his fist into the air before fixing his first place Pirelli hat firmly on top of his head, this was the best birthday present that he could have asked for (even if it was a little late). Nico was then handed his trophy by some member of the British parliament, either way it didn’t matter, he’d won. He lifted his trophy in the air to the cheers of the crowd, Mark was then presented with his second place trophy and Fernando was the last to receive his trophy. Nico was hoping that he would feel the way he felt now in Germany next week, a win there would be fantastic... Nico’s thoughts trailed off but he was brought back to reality by Fernando and Mark both spraying him in the face with champagne. Nico was quick to join then as he opened his bottle and began spraying the crowd and his fellow drivers before taking a quick swig.

“Well done mate, nice job out there” Mark clapped him on the back as he changed his Pirelli cap for his Red Bull one.

“Thanks, hey well done to you too” Nico grinned, also changing hats.

“Hey!! Well done ‘Nando!” Mark exclaimed, giving Fernando a well deserved hug.

“Thank you, you both had very good races out there today” Fernando clapped Nico on the back and smiled at him. Nico felt on top of the world, and that nothing would bring him down. _I can win in Germany, I can and I will._

*  *  *

_Monday 1 st July  – Heathrow airport_

If there was some way for Seanagh to still be hungover, she had no clue as to how or why. _Dammed Finns and their freakishly high alcohol tolerance levels!_ She knew deep down that shots with Kimi and Heikki Kovalainen was a bad idea, but on the other hand, she had retired at her home grand prix with Jenson only just taking tenth, so the McLaren team were more consoling themselves rather than celebrating. Still, Seanagh had now come to the conclusion that tequila and orange shots were not such a good idea. She was currently attempting to hide in the duty free area, looking though all of the nail polish stands, it took her ten minutes before she decided which colour she wanted – and she ended up buying five, and running into someone at the till, someone she didn’t want to see.

“Hello Seanagh” She tightened her jaw, looking up at him.

“Hello Kimi” She replied in the same tone that he had spoken to her.

“Congratulations on your race, you did very well” Seanagh raised her eyebrows; a compliment from Kimi was unheard of, even if it was slightly sarcastic.

“Thanks” She replied. “You did well too”

“Thank you” They stayed in silence after that, neither of them saying anything to each other before she left the till, walking away as fast as she could – but that was when she ran into the second person she didn’t want to see.

“Hi Seanagh” The German smiled brightly at her, Seanagh simply looked at him with cold eyes.

“Hello Sebastian” She paused, debating on harsh she would be “Sorry to hear about your race, what was it? Gear box failure?” She only meant the statement in a curious sense, bit Sebastian looked at her with hard eyes.

“Yeah that was it...” He paused staring at her; things had been icy between the two ever since the incident at the driver’s hotel. “Still, it’s all sorted now, everything will be fine for Germany” Seanagh wasn’t sure how Sebastian had meant that, but it had sounded competitive, like he was trying to get into her head. _Why do we have to be on the same flight?!_ “Well I’ll see you later, good luck for this weekend”

“Thanks, you too” Seanagh brushed past him and left duty free with her bagged purchase held firmly in her hand, and she was more than relieved when she saw Nico, Lewis and Jenson sitting together at a nearby table, laughing over a few coffee’s. It was when she saw them together that her phone buzzed in her pocket.

 _‘I don’t mind if you come over, we don’t bite ;)’_ Seanagh read the text from Jenson and giggled to herself as she walked over to join them.

“Um, mind if I join you?” She asked, looking at the only available seat.

“Yeah, yeah sure”

“Course, sit down” Lewis and Nico chorused as she sat down in her seat, quietly sighing with relief that she was nowhere near a certain German and a certain Finn.

“So, how’s things with ‘McLaren’s Golden Girl?” Lewis smirked before sipping on his coffee – that was what Seanagh had been getting called by the press over the past few months.

“Very funny Lewis!” Seanagh looked down; knowing that Jenson was sat opposite her was too much, especially after what happened with Sebastian. She looked up and met the gaze of his deep blue eyes, and looked down; he _must_ have seen her speaking to Sebastian.

“So...” He began, pushing away his empty coffee cup before resuming speaking. “How’s Kimi?” Seanagh looked up in surprise, Jenson still looking at her with the same stern expression.

“Um fine... I think, he didn’t say much”

“Ha! When does he?!” Nico exclaimed before finishing his coffee, the other three drivers looked at him stunned, they all knew how Nico felt about Kimi, the last thing they wanted was yet another ‘I hate Kimi’ rant. “What?! I’m just being honest” It was just as Nico said that when Kimi walked past with Raven, holding her hand tightly. Nico sighed and looked down, a small smirk appearing on Kimi’s face. They were gone within moments, but Nico no longer was himself, he had turned into the sadder version of Nico, the one that Jenson, Lewis and Seanagh had been putting up with since May. Seanagh sighed standing up, this had gone on long enough, and Jenson was by her side instantly, gripping her arm tightly so she couldn’t move.

“Jenson... let me go!” She struggled at his firm grip, eventually he let her go.

“You know that’s a bad idea, especially what happened before” Seanagh knew what he was referring to, Canada.

*  *  *

_After hearing Raven’s news Seanagh had stormed out of her hotel room and down to the hotel bar, where she was almost sure Kimi would be. Seanagh felt she had every right to be annoyed, Raven was so heartbroken after she had broken up with Kimi last year, after what he had done Seanagh was more than surprised that he and Raven were back together. She walked over to the bar, and Kimi was there just as Seanagh had guessed._

_“Ah hello Seanagh, what are you doing here?” Kimi asked knocking back his drink._

_“Kimi I don’t know what you’re playing at but-”_

_“Oh so Raven told you”_

_“Uh huh, and if you think that I am going to put up with this then you have got another thing coming” Seanagh crossed her arms, glaring at Kimi who got up from his bar stool to face her._

_“I know what you think of me after what happened with me and her, but I’ve changed. I won’t hurt her this time” Seanagh rolled her eyes, trying to hold back a sarcastic laugh._

_“Yeah, sure...” She paused “But Raven’s like family to me, and you know what will happen if-”_

_“Yeah, now go and be short and angry somewhere else, I’m trying to enjoy yourself” Giving Kimi one last glare Seanagh turned on her heel and left, strongly resisting the urge to punch the nearest wall._

*  *  *

Seanagh winced at the memory; she didn’t want to go through that again. “Yeah... you’re right Jense” Seanagh sat down silently, Jenson lingered where he stood for a moment before doing the same.

“You’re best just avoiding him Seanagh, he’s... well you know” Lewis shrugged. “Do you want a coffee?” He stood up, picking up his wallet from the table.

“Yeah sure, coffee sounds great”

“Come on, I’ll get it for you, my treat” He gestured his head towards the coffee stand, implying that Nico and Jenson wanted to speak in private – well away from Seanagh anyway. She stood up and followed Lewis, leaving Jenson and Nico in the privacy that they wanted.

*  *  *

Nico kept his eyes trained on Seanagh and Lewis, and waited until they were out of ear shot before he spoke.

“Talk about making it obvious mate” Jenson sighed looking over his shoulder.

“Says you” Nico looked at the Brit, slowly stirring his coffee. Jenson shrugged his shoulders in response. “Look I’m sorry I just...” He paused, gesturing his hands to say the words he didn’t want to say.

“I get it Nico” Jenson patted his shoulder before returning his attention to his coffee.

“What you mean you...?” Nico trailed off as Lewis and Seanagh returned with four coffees, both of them laughing their heads off.

“Wait, that actually happened?!”

“Yeah, and then...” Lewis stopped speaking and burst into another fit of laughter, handing Nico his second coffee.

“Um... thanks” Nico stared at the cup strangely, he never asked for a coffee – and neither did Jenson, but both him and Nico had another coffee in front of them regardless.

“British Airways flight BA0944 to Düsseldorf is now boarding for first class passengers” Nico sighed, picking up his stuff as he waited for the other three drivers to be ready to head to the gate to board their flight.

Nico was happy once he was on the plane; this would be his home grand prix, a clean slate. _Maybe... maybe this will be my week..._


	17. The Apology

_Tuesday 2 nd July – Nürburgring_

Sebastian smiled as he greeted his engineers in the Red Bull garage at the circuit, and for some reason they were all asking him if he felt alright – as if they would know about the fainting incident when they weren’t even there.

“Morning Rocky”

“Hey Seb, didn’t fancy staying in the hotel huh?” Rocky greeted him by lightly slapping the back of his shoulder. Sebastian simply nodded as he didn’t manage to get much sleep on the flight. “Oh well you’re not the only one, it seems that Palmer is quite eager as well” Sebastian eyes went from the floor to Rocky in disbelief

“Really... she’s here?”

“Yeah, I saw her going to the McLaren garage a few minutes ago – she looked quite pissed off though, must be with Pirelli for what happened with her tyres at Silverstone” Rocky nodded, examining the expression on Sebastian’s face.

“Oh yeah, well that’s understandable” Rocky nodded, and led Sebastian out of his side of the Red Bull garage and over to the pit wall.

“Did anything happen between you two last week? I mean she looked really annoyed at you on Sunday; you didn’t do anything to piss her off did you?” Rocky asked in a hushed whisper. Sebastian looked around him for any eavesdroppers – in particular any nosey journalists – before speaking.

“Will you tell anyone?” He asked.

“Depends. You know if it’s serious... I’m only joking, I won’t tell a soul” Rocky leaned against the fence, looking at him through his sunglasses.

“Well I... we...look this is kind of difficult to say. I don’t really know if I should be telling anyone” He shrugged, looking at the ground as the aforementioned McLaren driver walked past them heading towards the paddock.

“Alright then, but you might want to talk to her you know, straighten things out a little bit” Rocky pushed himself off the fence as Christian came walking towards them.

“Yeah... I’ll go do that now. See you Rocky” Sebastian smiled and put on his sunglasses as he nearly walked into Christian.

“Morning Seb, wasn’t expecting to see you here” Christian greed him with a polite smile.

“Yeah, I didn’t feel like staying at the hotel. I wanted to see if the car got here okay”

“Well as you can see she’s fine, why don’t you head to the paddock and grab a coffee, then you can head back to the hotel. I’ll call if I need you” Christian led him away from the pitlane and towards the paddock entrance.

“Looks like I don’t have a choice” Sebastian smiled nervously as he showed his access all areas pass to the security guard.

“See you later Seb” Christian laughed and returned to the garage, Sebastian walked in the opposite direction, debating on whether or not he should see Seanagh or his team. Rocky was right – Sebastian really should explain himself and apologise.

“Jeez, watch where you’re going will you!” Seanagh had walked into him – well more like the other way round. Rocky was right, she was pissed off.

“I’m sorry Seanagh, it was my fault I wasn’t looking where I was going” He offered to help her up, but she got up by herself and tried to push him away.

“Yeah, clearly” She replied bluntly, beginning to walk away from him.

“Look Seanagh wait, I need to speak to you” He grabbed her upper arm, stopping her in her tracks.

“Why?” She looked at him, pushing his hand off her.

“It’s important... it’s about what happened at the hotel back in England” Sebastian looked at her pleadingly.

“Why? What happened between us happened. No questions asked. Look can I go now? I really need to speak to my PA”

“Please, Seanagh. It won’t take long” He pleaded with her, his hand resting on her upper arm again.

“Ugh fine, we can do it now. I’ve got a few minutes to spare” She replied, taking off her sunglass and put them in the front pocket on her team shirt, she crossed her arms and looked at him expecting him to speak. “Well...”

“Um, can we do this in private? I don’t want any unwanted people to hear”

“We’re the only drivers here Sebastian, it’s not like they’d find out”

“I meant media people, it wouldn’t be good for anyone if they heard” Seanagh rolled her eyes and walked towards the hospitality centre, all the people from all the teams were allowed here – thankfully. They walked in and it was quiet, but there were a few people making a noise so his and Seanagh’s conversation wouldn’t be happening in complete silence. “I suppose you want a tea?” He asked when she found a table.

“Yeah, milk and one sugar please” Sebastian headed over to the bar and ordered a tea and a coffee – Seb couldn’t stand tea, he didn’t get why some people were so fond of it. A few minutes later he was given his drinks, and he returned to the table.

“There you go, tea with milk and one sugar” He placed the drink in front of her, she looked up at him before taking off her red McLaren cap and undoing her ponytail and letting her hair fall down her back. _She looks much better with her hair down..._

“So, you wanted to speak to me about what happened on Saturday”

“Yes... I uh, wanted to apologise about the whole thing. It wasn’t right of me, I mean you wanted me to leave and I didn’t even do that. It wasn’t a very nice thing of me to do” He looked at her, his eyes almost begging for forgiveness.

“Hmm” She looked down at her tea, before her eyes locked with Seb’s “Well, since we’re apologising, I’m sorry for slapping you in the face. I guess it wasn’t a very nice thing to do either” Sebastian nodded, brushing his fingers across where she slapped him.

“I deserved it though. I can be a little shit at times” Seanagh raised her eyebrows.

“Really? I hadn’t noticed” She replied sarcastically.

“Well most of the time you see the guy in front of the cameras. You don’t really see the guy I actually am, not many people do”

“I’m sure you’re not the only one who could say the same. I mean the number of times I’ve wanted to tell journalists to piss off is just... what?” Seanagh looked at Sebastian strangely; he had started giggling for no reason at all.

“Sorry, I just... you being angry. I can’t really imagine it; you’re always so sweet kind to everyone” Seb rested his hand on this thigh, taking a swig of his coffee. “Sorry, just a funny thought that’s all” Seanagh shrugged her shoulders and took a sip of her tea. Sebastian just sat and watched her for a few moments; and in those moments, she looked beautiful. “Here’s an idea, how about I take you around town, to make up for being such a prat”

“Oh no Seb, you don’t need to-”

“Please” He stood up, sorting out his shirt “I insist, I’ll even buy you another cup of tea. How about that?”

“Well... providing you take me back to the hotel straight afterwards” Sebastian smiled, pushing in his chair as he walked with her to the paddock exit. _That wasn’t so bad, maybe she wasn’t as pissed off as I thought she was._

*  *  *

Raven giggled as Kimi pulled her back onto the bed, gently tugging on his Lotus team shirt that she was currently wearing.

“Kimi... get off me!” She pushed Kimi’s hands away from her waist as she leaped up from the bed. She looked over her shoulder giggling, as Kimi smiled weakly before looking down sadly. “Kimi...what’s wrong?” She crossed over to him, sitting on the bed.

“It’s uh... nothing really. Just team stuff” Kimi sighed. Raven tiled her head, looking over at her boyfriend.

“Do you want to talk about it?” She asked, placing her hand on his arm.

“No. Not really, it’s nothing you should be worried about” It was the usual Kimi answer, short and to the point.

“Okay” Raven smiled sweetly, Kimi nodded in response before sighing again and ruffling his hand through his short blond hair. Raven saw how sad Kimi was and wrapped her arms around him “But if you need to, I’m here” She murmured softly into his hair. He wrapped his arms round her waist, murmuring a quiet thank you in reply. “Now, do you want some lunch...?” She paused with a seductive smirk.

“Later” He smiled, pulling her down onto the bed.


	18. The Bet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, here's the next chapter, unfortunately the next one won't be up until Monday at the earliest.
> 
> Anyway, hope you enjoy it :)
> 
> PS - Thanks to everyone who has read this so far, almost 700 hits in under a month is incredible, I never though that people would enjoy it, so thank you :)

Drinking in her surroundings it didn’t take Seanagh long to realise just how different Germany was to her native Britain, it had the continental felling that was so effortlessly German, sitting outside with Sebastian Seanagh felt like she stood out like a sore thumb, it didn’t help that both her and Seb were still wearing their team uniforms, and that Sebastian was awkwardly shuffling his feet so loudly that the nearby table could probably hear him.

“Are you uh... enjoying your coffee?” He asked after many minutes of silence.

“Yeah, it’s fine. Makes a difference to constantly having tea” She laughed nervously, for Seanagh this felt very uncomfortable considering Seb had only kissed her a few days before.

“What is it with British people and tea? I’ve never understood it” Sebastian looked at her with a smirk, Seanagh rolled her eyes.

“You are _such_ a German” She never meant it in an insulting way, in the same way that he meant the tea comment. _At least that’s how I think I meant it..._

“Better than being British” His grin turned into a smirk, Seanagh couldn’t help but roll her eyes again.

“Ouch” She replied in mock hurt, sipping on her coffee. Seanagh looked up at Sebastian, who was looking at her in some sort of examining gaze. “What?” She asked “Never seen a woman before?”

“I have, more times than you’ve had cups of tea” He pushed away his empty cup. “Never seen a man before?”

“Yeah, I do work with a good few of them you know. Some might say I’m even looking at one right now” She raised her eyebrows, finishing her coffee with a large gulp. Sebastian had how leaned forward, looking right into Seanagh’s eyes.

“Well that’s obvious. But I’m sure you have men falling at your feet all the time, being such an... Attractive woman such as yourself”

“Huh? So... you find me attractive” She asked, mirroring him by leaning inward. 

“Not so hard to, but there’s more to you than your dazzling smile and beautiful eyes” Seanagh couldn’t help but blush.

“Yeah, there might be” She leaned back; this was all getting a bit much for her. She hadn’t done this in a while; she hadn’t had a boyfriend for a good few years now.

“Gone on then, tell me everything about you” Sebastian also leaned back, smirking to himself.

“Why... I don’t have to”

“No you don’t, but I know all of the other lads well enough. You’re a bit of an enigma really”

“I’m sure you could always ask Jenson...” She paused, for the first time in weeks saying his name in a conversation just didn’t feel right.

“Yeah I could, but I want to hear it from _you_ ” Sebastian smiled at her sweetly this time. Seanagh sighed before speaking.

“Well, long story or short story?” Seanagh looked at her watch, she had promised to meet Jenson at the hotel for lunch in an hour.

“Well either way you’re going to take a while. Sometimes you’re worse than Fernando” Seb grinned at Seanagh, who kicked him lightly under the table.

“Fine I’ll tell you” She stood up. “On the way back to the hotel” Sebastian shook his head and smiled at her, hey both exchanged glances for a moment before Sebastian stood up and placed twenty Euros on the table and led Seanagh to his car. It was a different car to the one he had last week. It was still an Infiniti (most likely one of Seb’s many Infiniti cars) but instead was a metallic charcoal grey instead of white, with beige leather seats instead of the black ones in his other car. “How many company cars do you have Seb?” She asked, looking over at him as he threw his navy Red Bull cap onto the back seat.

“Um... a few” He smirked, starting the ignition. He moved his car out of its parking space and drove it carefully along the street. “Ah... road closure” Seanagh looked at the sign – that was in German – that blocked the path ahead of them. “I think I know a way round” He reversed the car and drove in the opposite direction, heading down a windy country road through a thick pine forest. Seanagh had to bite down on her lower lip to try and keep her coffee down; in her view Sebastian was going way too fast around some of the corners. Eventually he slowed and stopped in a lay by, overlooking the village where they had been only ten minutes before. “Sorry, was I going too fast?” Seanagh felt all of the colour drain from her face; she nodded in reply as she couldn’t find the words to say. “Sorry, I forgot I wasn’t on track”

“Yeah” Seanagh replied breathlessly. “I need some air” She unclipped her seatbelt and pushed herself out of the car, walking a few metres away from the car. She sat on the ground – which was covered in a thin layer of gravel – and tried to regain normal breathing. _What the hell is wrong with me?!_   _I’m a driver; I should be used to this!_ Burying her head in her hands she wished she was back at the hotel, lying in her bed with a cup of tea by her side. She heard the crunch of gravel behind her as Sebastian sat by her, placing his hand on her shoulder.

“Are you alright? You look awful”

“Yeah...” She stood up too fast, nearly falling over as Sebastian luckily caught her, his hands resting on her waist. “Okay... maybe not” Seb laughed, Seanagh just loved how his eyes sparkled in the sun... The situation she was in was only too obvious, it was the situation she promised herself that she’d avoid... falling for a driver, or in this case _two_ drivers. “Um I think I’m okay now” She tried to move herself from Sebastian’s grip, but failed miserably.

“Are you sure, you really do look awful” He led her over to the car, where they both sat on the bonnet. Seb’s right arm was still fixed in place. “Perhaps it was the coffee, maybe you’re not so used to it with all that tea you drink” Seanagh looked at him and rolled her eyes.

“What did tea ever do to you?!” Seanagh asked with a light giggle in her voice.

“It’s just not my thing, I only have it when I’m ill” Seb chuckled, maintaining his hold on her. “Are you okay now? You look a little better”

“Yep, I’ll be good enough to race this weekend if that’s what you’re asking” She stood up, Seb’s hand now resting on the car.

“Good” He bit his lip looking at her, laughing to himself “Hey, I have an idea”

“What?”

“Well, you’ve been saying how good your car and driving ability is in the past few weeks. How about we test that?” Seanagh looked at him, debating on whether or not it would be a good idea to continue to the conversation.

“Go on...”

“Well, let’s say, in Hungary I beat you in the race, you have to do some kind of... forfeit. And vice versa, if you beat me”

“Okay...” She paused, thinking of how to take advantage of the golden opportunity Seb had just handed her “If I win, you have to dye your hair... platinum blond” Seb’s eyes widened in horror, bringing his hand up to his light brown hair.

“And if I win...then you have to...” He paused, unable to think of anything. “I know” He clicked his fingers. “You have to accompany me to the Autosport awards at the end of the year”

“Fine”

“But say you win and I get on the podium” He smirked at the thought that was in his mind. “You have to kiss me” Seanagh’s eyes widened, she didn’t particularly like the idea of having to kiss Sebastian again.

“Alright then, but you take me out to dinner if I get on the podium and you win. Deal?” She extended her hand, which Sebastian very happily shook.

“It’s a bet”

*  *  *

After a lot of convincing, Raven had finally got Kimi into the hotel restaurant for lunch. She wanted to do something that would take his mind away from the undiscussed team problems he was currently having. She looked over at him intently, despite him constantly telling her he was fine – Raven could see that he was definitely _not_ fine. She moved the fork around on her plate, carefully moving around bits of chicken that she couldn’t be bothered to eat, the food was good but it made her think of home – the home she had left at sixteen.

“At least look as if you’re enjoying yourself” That comment was ironic coming from Kimi. Raven sighed, placing another forkful of chicken and pasta in her mouth.  She looked down at her plate, wanting to be anywhere else.

“Sorry, I’m just not feeling too great. That’s all” She looked up and saw Kimi looking at her with his eyebrows raised.  “Kimi please...”

“Raven, I don’t want to tell you, it’s not fair to bother you with it” Kimi took a large swig of his drink, placing the glass back on the table a little more forcefully than needed, silently telling Raven that the matter wasn’t to be discussed any further, at least not in public anyway. Raven looked down, continuing to eat her lunch in silence. A few minutes later, Jenson and Seanagh – who had been at a nearby table for the past hour – had left in fits of laughter. _Thank god they’ve gone..._ “I’m done” Kimi pushed his plate away, looking at Raven intently. “I’m sorry for getting mad”

“It’s fine...” She shrugged, also pushing her plate away.

“No... It’s not. I shouldn’t be mad at you; it’s not your fault” Kimi looked down, quietly muttering something in Finnish to himself. “Do you want to go back upstairs? I need to talk to you about...something” Eric Boullier walked passed their table, almost forcing a smile at Kimi. If Kimi wasn’t desperate to leave the restaurant, then he was now. He pushed himself out of his seat and asked the nearest waiter to put the hotel bill on Kimi’s tab before he took Raven’s hand and led her towards the lift.

“Kimi... what was that?” Raven asked hesitantly as he punched the button for the fifth floor. Raven looked at Kimi concerned. He didn’t say anything until they were in the hotel room, in which Kimi punched the pillow in a way of venting his anger. “K-Kimi?” Raven stammered, approaching the Finn with caution.

“I’m sorry... it’s like I said, team issues” Kimi replied, not being able to look at Raven. Eventually he looked up at her, with what looked like tears forming in his eyes. Raven crossed the room in a heartbeat, wrapping her arms around him, murmuring words of comfort into his hair as he sobbed. Once he had stopped being so distressed Kimi explained the whole situation to Raven – about how Lotus still hadn’t paid him this season, and that a solution was very far away in the distance. Raven bit her lip to prevent her from going mental, she could see how the whole thing was making him feel upset, and her lashing out wouldn’t help his mood.

“Well maybe, maybe everything will turn out alright in the end. I mean, a couple of years ago in F3 I had financial troubles and I didn’t get paid until the very end of the season. But things like these usually wok out” Raven hugged Kimi tightly, attempting to comfort him.

“Well I don’t know yet... but I’ll find out what’s going on later in the year. I will have a better idea then” Kimi replied, looking into the eyes of his girlfriend.

“Yeah, plus you’ve got summer break to look forward to”

“Yeah, by the way, what have you got planned for then?” Kimi asked, smiling a little.

“Well, I think that I’m off between races then. But I’d have to double check”

“Okay, well if you’re free... Would you like to come to Switzerland?” He smirked, a sort of sparkle now prominent in his eyes.

“I’d love to” Raven giggled, before leaning in to kiss Kimi. _Three weeks? I guess I can wait that long..._


	19. Press Conference and Heartbreak

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next chapter, sorry for the wait, sorry for the press conference for being so long, better than writing the whole thing... anyway hope you guys enjoy it :)

_Thursday 4 th July – German Grand Prix Drivers Press Conference_

Nico had always disliked the press days; to him it wasn’t part of the racing, if anything it felt like an obligation. Except today felt different, either because it was his home race, or because both he and Seanagh had everyone laughing before the press conference had even started when they both fell off their seats. Nico looked up at the ceiling and simply couldn’t stop laughing as Seanagh has almost face planted the table before falling over her chair before pushing over Nico – obviously without meaning to.

“Sorry mate...” She giggled, attempting to get back in her seat between him and Sebastian.

“It’s alright” Nico grinned as he straightened his hat. The other drivers were still laughing and some of the journalists giggled as they took notes in their notebooks.

“Sorry about that guys” Seanagh giggled through her apology, her cheeks turning a bright crimson.

“Any way where were we, yes so not much time between the last race and this – Silverstone still very much fresh in our minds. I think all six of you had a very eventful race in Britain. So let’s start off with your thoughts on the race in Silverstone and the afternoon you had there. I guess we should start with Nico Rosberg, as you won”

“I had a good afternoon! It was a very good race weekend in general and I’m really to come out with that result at the end. To have a fast car in the race as well, which has been our weakness in recent weeks and months. So to have improved there was great. And home grand prix for the team, so to win there was absolutely fantastic.” Nico replied, um-ing and ah-ing at certain places, he looked round the sea of journalists as Sebastian spoke about his qualifying experience, and then his race pace on Sunday, the tyre failures, and his gear box failure toward the end of the race. Nico tried to hide his smile; he might not have won if Seb’s gearbox hadn’t failed.

“Seanagh, what about yourself? Your first race weekend at Silverstone, what stands out for you?”

“Well, for my first British Grand Prix I think it could have gone a lot better but it wasn’t all bad. Jenson got a point which was good considering the race we both had. I think tyres were a big problem, with all the tyre blowouts that occurred I think Pirelli really need to look at that, but all in all not a great weekend for the team but the fan support was amazing which softened the blow a little bit, but the team and myself will be working to improve our performance this weekend” Seanagh replied with a smile before Adrian, Nico Hulkenberg and Daniel voiced their thoughts over last weekend. Nico was surprised as only Seanagh had mentioned the dramatic tyre failures that occurred during the race. Nico’s concentration tended to faze in and out as the other drivers spoke, now he remembered why he hated press conferences. They were so boring.

“So Seanagh back to you now, this will be your ninth race as a McLaren driver in your first season in Formula One, how have you felt about the past eight races, and your first season as a whole?”

“Well I think it’s been a pretty good season for me so far, I’ve had a podium finish which is great, no wins just yet unfortunately, but I’ve had a good couple pole positions and points finishes, which is fantastic. Some races have been better than others, I wasn’t so lucky last weekend or in Monaco, but that’s in the past and my focus will be on this weekend and Hungary wand I will be aiming for a podium or a win if possible” Seanagh replied defiantly and some people looked shocked at such brave words. For a rookie anyway.

“And do you think your driving has improved since joining F1?”

“Well, it’s very different than F3 in many aspects, but I like to think it has, I’m still getting used to the car and everything, but I think my driving has improved and I hope to improve even more as the season progresses” Adrian spoke after that, and Nico was pleased when he was asked another question.

“Thank you Adrian, and talking of improvements, Nico Rosberg, two wins in the last three races. I can’t think of anything you’d rather enjoy – maybe three wins in three races – but you must be loving the way this season is turning out at the moment.” Nico nodded and leaned forward, thinking up an answer.

“Yeah, for sure. It’s a really nice time in my career at the moment. It’s new. I’ve never had a car as quick as it is now, going to every next race, knowing that I go out there in qualifying I can fight for a position right at the front. And then also in the race the car is getting better and better so the chances are higher so that even on Sunday I can keep my qualifying position. And it’s a really, really nice feeling. Very motivating also.”

“If that’s the case, then do you see yourself and Mercedes now as genuine title contenders this season?”

“No it’s too early to say that we’re really focusing on, you know, getting our momentum, keeping it going as we have at the moment and just concentrating one race to the next, trying to get the most out of them and just as we have done now in the last couple of races which have gone fantastically for me and then we see in a few races time”

“So, anything could still happen, you don’t think you’re main threat to stopping Red Bull winning another world title?”

“I don’t really want to speak about a world title... yet” Nico smirked, he was happy with how his season was going so far, and being seen as a contender for the world title – even if it was the constructors – felt truly amazing. After that, questions were being taken from the floor; Nico was pleased when the first question was for him.

“You are now fifty points behind Sebastian, Nico. How much percentage would you give yourself to catch him in the championship?”

 “How many percent chance? Short term, I just want to annoy Sebastian and Red Bull a little bit race by race, by being ahead of them and that’s the most important thing, really, to be ahead of not only them but other teams and try and win more races. That’s what I’m focused on at the moment and that’s what the whole team is focused on.” Nico nodded and chuckled, he did like the sound of annoying his fellow German, out of the corner of his eye he saw Sebastian smirk. The next question was for the both of them; asking about what would change for their teams with the new Pirelli tyres that had been introduced after the events of the last race. Nico replied, but the next question was asked straight after, meaning Sebastian couldn’t reply. The next question was one for all of the drivers; asking how comfortable the drivers felt driving with the new construction of tyre. Seanagh was the first to reply.

“Well I think it is important to change the tyres after what happened last weekend with the very dramatic tyre failures. And I think it is important that we as drivers do feel safe in the car and with the tyres that are on them, especially since there could have been an accident with what happened so I think it’s good that Pirelli are reacting to what happened to try and make their tyres safer to use” Adrian, Nico Hulkenberg and Daniel spoke after her, before Sebastian was asked on what he thought.

“I think first of all that it’s good that within not even a week’s time, how we were able to get a different tyre for this race which hopefully is safer for all of us. Obviously the last race was not what we want and not satisfactory so… yeah I think it’s good that we have a new tyre here. How much better and how different it will be is difficult to judge at this stage but I’m confident that it’s a step forward.” Nico nodded before adding to what Sebastian had said.

“Well I trust the FIA will make the right calls as they are, you know they’re working flat out with Pirelli so I’m sure there’s going to be progress and it shouldn’t be a concern this weekend” Nico answered another couple of questions about the new Pirelli tyres, and he was so tired by this point that he couldn’t remember what he said, even while he was speaking he couldn’t remember it. Hulkenberg was asked a question after that abut his wages – again Nico couldn’t remember what he said. The last two questions went to Sebastian, the first asking him if he wanted Ricciardo as his team mate.

“Well, like I said in Silverstone after Mark announced his retirement, obviously I think it’s still early days to talk about that and even if it’s not my decision, so yeah he sits here right now so if I could I would give him the seat but equally if Kimi was there I would give him the seat. It’s not my intention to do any god or bad to people, so it’s decided by the team, so far we haven’t really spoken about it but at the moment we have other concerns as you saw last race we retired, that was the number one concern so to fix that problem for this race to make sure that we don’t retire for the same reason again and maybe a little later on we’ll talk about drivers as well but again it’s not my decision as far as I know Daniel is doing a very good job, and all the rest is not in my hands” He laughed nervously, shrugging his shoulders, hoping that the answer was sufficient.

And the last question asked Sebastian about how he felt about not yet winning his home grand prix, Nico felt that it could have been a question to all of the German drivers, but by this point Sebastian was the one in demand by the press as he was still leading the championship table by 21 points, so it was still all to play for, as said before Nico was only 50 points behind Sebastian, so he could do it, but what he’d need was a win to help push him along, and a win at his home grand prix would be the best thing in the world...

“And that concludes today’s press conference, thank you to our six drivers for coming down today...” Nico was pulled back into reality by the sound of chairs moving as the other five drivers headed out the door to leave.

“Hey you two, don’t fall over the chairs” Nico Hulkenberg smirked as he held the door open for the other drivers, letting them out into the warm July air.

“Ha! Very funny Nico...” Seanagh walked past them, trying to catch up with Sebastian. Daniel, Adrian and Hulkenberg left to go to the circuit, where as Nico, Sebastian and Seanagh walked in the opposite direction to head to the paddock. Jenson joined them a few minutes after, saying that Martin had sent him to check that Seanagh was alright.  “It was only a fall; Martin’s got nothing to worry about. Honestly Jenson I’ll be fine!”

“I just wanted to check that you hadn’t sprained your wrist when you fell, if you had then you wouldn’t have been able to drive this weekend” Jenson sighed, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

“Well as you can see I’m fine, really I am so just...” Seanagh trailed off as she slowed to a stop, right in front of the four drivers were Kimi and Raven, wrapped in each other’s arms. Nico’s heart sank; he didn’t want to see this. Jenson walked forward attempting to distract him but it didn’t work.

“N-Nico, come mate let’s just-”

“RAVEN!” Nico pushed him out of the way as he ran towards her; she turned round and looked at him sympathetically, with Kimi looking at him like dirt.

“Hi Nico...” Raven smiled sweetly, Kimi on the other hand was that total opposite.

“What do you want?” Kimi asked coldly, looking at Nico in disgust.

“Um... Raven I was wondering if you want to-” Nico began, but he was cut off by Kimi.

“She’s busy” He wrapped his arms around her, as if he was making claim to her.

“I’m sorry Nico, but I promised Kimi I’d spend time with him this week”

“Oh... okay” Nico nodded. Kimi pulled Raven into him, his hand slowly sliding down her body, he was obviously doing it to annoy him, and it worked.

“Kimi... I told you not to do that in public” Raven tried to wriggle out of his grasp, yet she stayed put.

“Yeah you shouldn’t do that, it’s disrespectful” Nico looked at Raven who smiled at him weakly, Kimi must have seen it as the expression on his face soured.

“Oh...” Kimi let go of Raven and stood so that he was face to face with Nico “And what are you doing to do about it, huh?” He cracked his knuckles, Nico was thankful when Raven somehow managed to push herself in between them.

“Will both of you stop it!” Both drivers stepped back, neither of them breaking eye contact with each other.

“Guys... everything alright?” Seanagh walked over. _No everything is not alright!_

“Yes everything is fine, but I’d appreciate it if you’d stop meddling in other people’s business. Come on Raven” Kimi pulled Raven away in the other direction, Nico’s feet stayed glued to the ground as his eyes followed Raven until she was out of eyesight. He bit his lip, resisting the urge to scream, seeing her with Kimi; it was like a thousand knives had been pushed into his chest.

“Nico...” Jenson walked over, gently placing his hand on his shoulder, but to Nico he looked burry with the tears that were forming in his eyes. Nico was desperate to be anywhere else, so he ran away from Jenson, Seanagh and Sebastian only stopping when he found somewhere where he wouldn’t be seen. He hid at the back of the Mercedes motor home, in the small space between it and the wall of the building that it had been placed next to. He slumped down on the ground, pulling his knees to his chest as he let out the tears he had been keeping back. He knew that the others would be looking for him, most likely out of pity. But he didn’t want pity, he wanted Raven.

“Nico...” He looked up, and she was standing over him looking down on him in pity.

“Raven!” Nico pushed himself up off the ground, smiling at her brightly.

“Nico... I know. I know how you feel about me” She said bluntly, she looked as if she was holding back tears of her own. Nico opened his mouth to speak, but Raven cut him off. “I’m with Kimi; you just have to accept that” 

“He doesn’t deserve you Raven, look at the way he treats you. I can’t accept that” Nico took a step forward, making Raven take a step back.

“Then I guess we can’t be friends anymore... goodbye Nico” She turned and left, walking out of his life. Nico stood there in shock. _How could you have let her leave so easily, you didn’t even put up a fight!_ Nico leaned his head on the wall in front of him, fresh tears falling down his cheeks. 


	20. Post-German GP 2013

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next chapter, next one will hopefully be up tomorrow :)

_Sunday 7 th July - Nurburgring _

Seanagh sighed as she made her way back to the McLaren garage, she had just been weighed and the stewards didn’t seem to have a problem with anything so she was allowed to leave – an opportunity which she gladly took since she could hear Sebastian behind her.

“Congratulations, look like you’ll have to save a date in your diary. And good luck for Hungary” Sebastian winked at her before she left. _‘Save a date in your diary’ what’s that about?_ She thought about what he had meant, and it was only a few moments later when she understood it. _So that’s why he wished me luck for Hungary... the German..._ Her thoughts trailed off when she passed the Mercedes garage when she saw something she had never expected to see. Raven and Nico were speaking to each other, and for some reason that was completely unknown to her, they hugged. Quickening her pace as she walked, she ran into Jenson outside his side of the McLaren garage.

“Hey, good race. You did great out there today” Jenson clapped her on the shoulder, smiling brightly.

“Thanks. You too” She returned the smile, today had been a good day for the team; Jenson had finished sixth, and Seanagh had finished in fifth. They both stood there in silence, Seanagh was wondering if Jenson was mad at her for overtaking him five laps towards the end of the race.

“So um...” “Look I-” They both spoke at the same time, causing smiles on both of their faces.

“I’m not mad at you Seanagh; you were just doing your job. Nothing more” Jenson smiled again, handing his helmet over to Mikey, his personal trainer.

“You sure?” She asked biting her lip.

“Yeah I am, now stop worrying alright” Jenson walked into his garage, and Seanagh walked into hers with a weight lifted off her shoulders. Martin greeted her with a smile, looking very proud of the young driver.

“Well done out there, that’s was a really good race. You climbed nine places, you could at least look happy about it” Seanagh forced a smile at him, Martin clearly knew why. “Look, by this point in the season we are expecting you to put pressure on Jenson. So you have nothing to worry about” Martin smiled at her reassuringly before heading over to speak to Jenson, leaving Seanagh with a thought nagging in her mind. _I have got to win in Hungary._

*  *  *

By silly o’clock on a very early Monday morning  the majority of the drivers were waiting in the first class passenger lounge for their flights; the majority of them were heading to London, but Fernando, Felipe, Daniel and Jean-Eric were going to Italy, and Nico Hulkenberg and Esteban were heading to Switzerland to head to their respective team factories. Seanagh was sitting at a table by herself, sipping on a can of sparkling Mango juice and listening to her music as she looked over her notebooks that she had been using to take notes on the different race weekends. Someone standing near her cleared his throat; she looked up and saw Jenson, holding two cups of tea.

“Hey Jense” She smiled sweetly, moving out the chair opposite her with her foot “You can sit down if you want”

“Cheers, I hope you don’t mind, you looked like you could use the company” Jenson sat down, placing one of the teas in front of Seanagh. “What are you doing anyway?” He asked, looking at the three notebooks curiously.

“These?” She held one up with one hand, pausing her music and taking out her earphone with the other. “I use these notebooks to write down stuff about the races this year; information about the circuit, my performances in free practice, qualifying and the race. Things like that”

“Huh? And you use these a lot?”

“Yeah, since the start of the year. I did a similar thing for F3 as well, although I didn’t have as many” She laughed nervously, not wanting to sound like she was some kind of workaholic.

“Well, F1 is a lot of work” Jenson sipped on his tea, looking over at his team mate with a smirk.

“I can see that” Seanagh sighed, looking over her notes from the last race: _be careful on overtakes, be cautious around other cars, don’t even think about cutting corners..._

“Come on, that’s our flight” Seanagh looked up at Jenson confused, out of the corner of her eye she could see the other drivers that were left heading towards the departure gate.

“Oh, I didn’t hear” Seanagh packed away her things and followed Jenson and the other drivers.

“Yeah, your tea went cold”

“Sorry”

“Don’t apologise, you were just working, that’s all” Jenson showed his passport to the flight attendant, following Seanagh onto the plane. As usual all of the teams were sat together in groups, taking up half of the plane at least. Seanagh sat down in her seat, with Jenson sitting next to her. The flight would only last a couple of hours, but by the time they would have arrived back in London it would be five o’clock in the morning, and Seanagh was tired, really tired...

*  *  *

Seanagh had fallen asleep a few minutes after the plane had took off, so Jenson stayed quiet and read one of the books he had brought with him. He looked up and saw Martin walk over once the seatbelt sign above their heads had been switched off.

“Hey Jenson... fallen asleep has she?” Martin asked, direction to the light snoring next to Jenson.

“Yeah...” Jenson looked at her with a small smile on his face, his mind flashed back to the airport when Seanagh was looking over her notes; he had never seen her in such a deep level of concentration before. He’d smirk at the way she occasionally bit her lip, brushing her hair out of her eyes, how her hands would effortlessly brush across the paper as she wrote; he was amazed by how beautiful she was.

“I’ll leave you two alone. Let you get some rest” Martin left; and Jenson took his attention from his team mate and back to his book, well he tried to.


	21. Revalation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, here's another chapter (exactly one month since I first put this up) never expected to get 830-ish hits in such a short amount of time, so thank you to everyone who's read this so far and left kudos/comments or has subscribed, it really means a lot. Hope you all enjoy the chapter :)

_Wednesday 24 th July - Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport_

Sebastian hated the flight over, and he was more than happy to leave the airport once he got his bags off the luggage carousel.  He stormed past the press and straight to the taxi rank, where the car that would usually be waiting for him wasn’t there. Annoyed, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and called Christian, asking why the pick-up car wasn’t there.

“Oh sorry Seb, Mark left without telling the driver wait for you. If you want I can pick you up myself. I’ll only be about twenty minutes” Knowing Seb’s luck he’d take longer than that, but it was better than having to ask a taxi driver in very bad Hungarian the name of the hotel he couldn’t even pronounce.

“Yeah sure, I’ll see you in twenty minutes” Seb hung up and went back inside the airport terminal building, where a few of the drivers were still milling about. Seb was delighted when he saw Kimi by one of the cheap coffee stands; he rushed over to him, passing both McLaren drivers without taking any notice of them.  “Hey Kimi” Seb smiled brightly at the Finn, who responded with the usual glare.

“Hello Seb, why are you not at the hotel?” He asked, ordering Seb a coffee.

“Mark got in the pickup car and forgot about me, so Christian is picking me up in twenty minutes” Seb heard giggling from behind him, he knew who it was, the thought of that person making him clench his fists.

“What’s up with you huh?” Kimi asked handing him his coffee.

“Nothing... so where’s Raven?” Kimi brushed past him and walked over to where she was, with Jenson and Seanagh. Seb looked at the McLaren drivers; they were both smiling, laughing like they had no care in the world. Gritting his teeth he walked over and took the spare seat next to Kimi, sipping his coffee as he did so.

“Hey Seb” He looked up and saw Seanagh smiling at him; he returned the smile and returned to his coffee, his mind going back to the flight.

*  *  *

Seb was sitting at the first class bar with Kimi, a can of Red Bull can in his hand. The subject they were discussing was something that Seb didn’t want to be heard by anyone, even if they were the only ones there.

“But if you like her then-”

“Kimi, please just shut up!” Sebastian hissed looking over his shoulder.

“Why, who would hear?”

“He would” Seb took a large gulp of his Red Bull, nearly choking on the volume he had consumed.

“I don’t get it Seb, you like her, she... might like you as well. Just ask her out”

“But... I can’t. One, she’s a driver and Two... Jenson” Seb sighed, taking another drink.

“Jenson, you’re not going out with her because of Jenson”

“Yeah... come on Kimi he’s her team mate. Besides you heard what happened between them at Silverstone, it wouldn’t be fair to do that to them” Silence fell between them, Kimi looked down at his drink, thinking about what Seb had said. “But even then... I think I really like her Kimi. I mean she’s... just great”

“I still think you should ask her out” Kimi smirked, finishing his drink.

“Yeah? And how would Jenson take that?” A few moments of silence followed before the aforementioned Jenson walked up to the bar ordering two teas. Seb looked down at the half empty Red Bull can, wondering how much of the conversation Jenson had heard.

“Are you coming back down Seb?” Jenson asked him; looking at him with a smile, holding the drinks in his hands.

“Uh... yeah. See you Kimi” Seb jumped off his stood at the bar and followed Jenson back to their seats, completely forgetting his can of Red Bull. The situation wasn’t helped that Seb was sitting with Jenson and Seanagh; the latter sat between the two men. Neither Jenson nor Seb said anything to each other for the rest of the flight. Seb was sure Jenson heard something, as Jenson would glare at him whenever he spoke to Seanagh. _He knows..._

*  *  *

The mood in the airport was the same, Jenson and Seb didn’t speak. The look that Jenson gave Seb when he said hi to Seanagh was something that Seb had never seen from Jenson before; anger, protective, jealousy. Seb was more than happy when Christian waved Seb over from the terminal door. Seb smiled, picking up his bags as he rushed towards his boss without saying bye to his friends.

“Hey Christian” Seb threw his bags in the car and climbed in the front seat, grinning as the car pulled away from the airport building.

*  *  *

Jenson was happy once he was at the hotel, the only downside was that he’d have to be in the same building as Sebastian, but that was only until Monday, Jenson could make it until then, at least that was what he thought. Seanagh was stood next to him and she was tapping her fingernails on the reception desk as they waited for the receptionist to return with their room keys. In that waiting time, Sebastian and Christian had arrived, Jenson’s shoulders tensed up as he stood about one foot away from him, he still couldn’t get over what he overheard on the plane.

*  *  *

Jenson bounded along the aisle as he went to the first class bar to get drinks. By the looks of things it was only Seb and Kimi that were there, having a discussion that Seb didn’t want to have.

“Kimi, please just shut up!” Seb hissed, Jenson ducked behind the curtain so that he wouldn’t be seen. He was about to move when he found his feet somehow glued to the floor, for some reason he wanted to know what was going on.

“Why, who would hear?” Kimi asked plainly.

“He would” Jenson’s eyebrows rose. Who’s ‘he’?

“I don’t get it Seb, you like her, she... might like you as well. Just ask her out”

“But... I can’t. One, she’s a driver and Two... Jenson” Seb sighed. Jenson’s eyes widened as he heard his name. _What have I got to do with this?_

“Jenson, you’re not going out with her because of Jenson”

“Yeah... come on Kimi he’s her team mate. Besides you heard what happened between them at Silverstone, it wouldn’t be fair to do that to them” Jenson had to stop himself from storming in there. Seanagh, Seb liked Seanagh. Jenson clenched his fists, suddenly felling defensive over his team mate. “But even then... I think I really like her Kimi. I mean she’s... just great” Jenson bit his lip, he knew that he felt the same way as Seb did, he just couldn’t put it into words.

“I still think you should ask her out”

“Yeah? And how would Jenson take that?” Jenson waited a few moments before walking in and ordering the drinks. Sebastian looked down at his can of Red Bull in shock. He probably wasn’t expecting to see him anytime soon, even if they were sitting together.

“Are you coming back down Seb?” Jenson asked him, looking at him with a smile, trying to hide his anger.

“Uh... yeah. See you Kimi” Jenson turned on his heel and left, the footsteps of Sebastian behind him as he followed Jenson back to their seats.

“There you are, took you long enough” Seanagh smiled as Jenson handed her tea to her. Jenson returned the smile before glaring at Sebastian. _He can’t have her, there’s just no way._

*  *  *

Jenson had to stop himself from jumping in delight as him and Seanagh were handed their room keys.

“Jenson, slow down” Seanagh had to rush to keep up with him; Jenson was just so desperate to get away from Sebastian.

“Sorry, I just really want to get to my hotel room” Jenson grinned, he was finally away from a particular German.

“Well I’m not staying long. I’m heading down to the circuit, I wanna see how everything’s going on” Seanagh looked at her watch. Jenson had to think of something quickly, Seanagh going down to the circuit meant that she might run into Seb, and that might mean...

“You are? I might go down to, I need to double check something with Martin” Jenson smiled, it sounded genuine enough.

“Um... Okay. Just give me a few minutes” Seanagh went into her room and shut the door behind her. Jenson opened the door, threw his bags onto the bed and rushed back out again. He had no idea as to why he was acting like this, but was what Seb had said on the plane that seemed to have pushed a button... no pun intended. Seb and Jenson now had another thing in common, and Jenson was determined to get her first. 


	22. Race 10: Hungary 2013

_Saturday 27 th July – Hungarian Grand Prix, Q2_

Seanagh was happy when she was pushed back to the garage in her car; she flipped up her visor to get a thumbs up from David her race engineer, telling her that she had made Q3. The car was lifted up and the screens were placed on the area in front of her, David was talking her through her telemetry through the team radio. She looked over at Jenson’s side of the garage; he was out of the car and looked very disappointed with himself.

“Hey David hold up a second, did Jenson make Q3?” Seanagh asked, looking over at him.

“No, no he didn’t. Now see what you did on turn 12...” Seanagh’s eyes may have been on the screen, but her mind was with Jenson, she felt bad for him not being able to make Q3 again.

“I don’t want to set a time, we should save tyres for the race” Seanagh spoke suddenly, cutting David off.

“Are you sure? I mean it might benefit us if we...”

“Nope, if she doesn’t want to go out then we can’t force her. Turn off the engine” Martin cut Michael off, much to Seanagh’s relief. The engine was switched off, the car lowered and Seanagh got out of the car, taking of her helmet.

“Looks like you’ll get tenth, Webber isn’t going out either. You did a good job today; let’s see if we can get a podium out of this” David spoke to her with a proud smile, if she did what she had done in Germany she’d have a good chance of getting on the podium, maybe even winning.

“What are you doing, you should be out on track?” Jenson was stood in front of her, his hands on her shoulders.

“I want to save my tyres for the race, besides a top ten qualifying is good enough for me” Seanagh smiled, trying to loosen her way out of Jenson’s grip.

“But...”

“Jenson...” Seanagh managed to push his hands off her “Webber isn’t setting a time either, I’m not the only one. So don’t worry about me, okay?” Jenson nodded, mumbling a sort of reply. “What’s up with you anyway? You’ve been really... off the past few days”

“I dunno” Jenson shrugged. Seanagh looked at him for a few moments before looking over her shoulder to speak to Martin.

“Hey Martin! Can Jenson and me go to the motor home to get tea?” She could she Jenson’s face light up at that point. Martin gave them the thumbs up and they left the garage and went straight to the paddock. The past two weeks before this weekend had been great. Seanagh had spent most of her time at the factory with Jenson – but she even got a weekend off to go and see her family in Scotland (and she had somehow managed to persuade them to come to the race on Sunday). But in those two weeks Jenson wasn’t acting that way he was now. Ever since they had arrived in Hungary on Wednesday, Jenson had never left her side. At first she thought it was sweet, but by Friday it had gotten annoying, up to the point when she was desperate to get in the car. But now they were in the paddock, Jenson was acting the way he was two weeks ago – something that Seanagh found refreshingly nice. Once they had reached the McLaren motor home, they had gotten changed out of their race suits and into their team uniforms and were now waiting on their tea. There was a large TV screen set up near to where they were standing, which was showing the last few seconds of qualifying, Lewis Hamilton had just crossed the line and was only just quicker than Sebastian to secure pole position. The top ten qualifiers was made up of Hamilton on pole, followed by Vettel, Grosjean, Rosberg, Alonso, Raikkonen, Massa, Ricciardo, Webber in ninth and Seanagh in tenth, with Jenson down in thirteenth. Jenson wasn’t so happy with his position on the grid as him and Seanagh went back to the McLaren garage, but Seanagh was surprisingly pleased, and not going out for Q3 meant that she had new sets of tyres for the race (apart from the set of options she went out on in Q2) it would give her an advantage – the advantage she needed to win.

*  *  *

_Sunday 28 th July – Hungarian Grand Prix_

Jenson sighed in frustration as he drove his car into the pitlane; Grosjean had tried to get past him on the chicane at turns six and seven, and the back of his Louts went into Jenson’s front wing. So Jenson decided to take his first pit stop, his tyres were almost gone anyway, so it wasn’t like he didn’t need to pit in the first place. Stopping the car in the pit box Jenson saw that a set of prime tyres were put on the car – but no front wing. The red light went green above his head and he pulled out of the pit, turning off the speed limiter when he was back on the circuit

“Jenson we didn’t see any front wing damage, no front wing damage”

“Okay, no problem” Jenson went into the first chicane with no problems at all; all he had to do now was finish the race.

*  *  *

Seanagh was on the final lap of the race, and was in a comfortable second place, but she was right on Hamilton’s tail. She knew that she was capable of getting past him – she’d done it before – but Hamilton was on the defensive, blocking her at every chance he got to prevent her from getting past.

“Okay Seanagh, we know you can get past him, but make it a nice clean move. And even if you don’t get past we’ll be very happy with second. But try to win if you can” The conformation from Martin was a good enough reason for Seanagh to give this last lap everything she had. Going out of turn eleven both cars were running wheel to wheel all the way down the straight into turn twelve. Both cars had gone through turn twelve cleanly and Hamilton was only just in front of Seanagh by turn thirteen. But the events after that came as a surprise. Somehow, by some form of miracle Seanagh had got past Hamilton on the last corner, using all of her remaining KERS she saw the chequered flag and pushed her foot down on the throttle as she crossed the line, she couldn’t see Hamilton, so she was unsure whether or not she had won. The crowd cheered as she went into the first corner, she heard Martin’s voice on the team radio almost making Seanagh jump out of her skin. “Well done Seanagh you’ve done it. You’ve won the Hungarian Grand Prix!”

_Wait... I did what?!_

“Nice move on the last corner, very impressive. You won!” David confirmed what Martin had said to her. Seanagh had just won her first ever grand prix.

“Thank you guys so much, I couldn’t have done it without you. WE WON!!!” Seanagh cheered going into the first chicane, waving at the crowds with a beaming smile on her face. Pulling the car to a stop in front of the ‘1’ sign in parc ferme she got out of the car and stood on top of it, punching her fist in the air in celebration. She jumped down and ran over to her team of engineers, hugging as many of them as she could. She could hear cheers in every direction, turning round she saw two other cars – a Lotus and a Red Bull pull up next to Seanagh’s McLaren, but in the distance she saw Jenson taking to Martin, and she ran over to them hugging them both. They both said something to her, but she couldn’t hear since she was still wearing her helmet, she took it off along with her balaclava, grinning at Jenson and Martin.

“Well done today that was a fantastic job” Martin hugged her with a large grin on his face, her win meant McLaren had probably moved up a place in the constructors table.  Seanagh looked at Jenson who smiled at her brightly, wrapping his arms around her in the longest hug she’d ever had.

“Well done, I’m so proud of you. You were amazing out there” He smiled and kissed her cheek, making Seanagh’s face go bright red.

“Um thanks, you were great to I’m sure” Jenson looked down at her smiling.

“You should go, there’s a bottle of champagne with your name on it” Jenson smirked heading back to the McLaren garage. And with one final wave Seanagh left with Martin to head to the podium. Seanagh heard what sounded like Sebastian and Kimi and the pre-podium room, joking with each other about the race. Seanagh walked in with Martin, a wide grin noticeable on Sebastian’s face.

“Well, this is a surprise. I was expecting Hamilton” Kimi smirked, handing Seanagh a bottle of water.

“Yeah, so was I” Seanagh chuckled, looking out the window she saw masses of F1 fans heading down to the podium.

“Still very impressive, was it the last corner you got him?” Sebastian asked, looking at her with a wry smile.

“Uh yeah, I managed to over take him on the last corner” She took another drink of her water and sighed as she screwed the top back on. Martin hander over her first place Pirelli cap and she walked out onto the podium after Seb and Kimi, the crowd cheering and clapping as she took her place on the top step of the podium. She took off her hat as the British national anthem boomed through the surrounding speakers. Although she was smiling, tears began to fall down Seanagh’s cheeks; the fact that she had won her first grand prix, in her first season of F1 was phenomenal. As the anthem drew to a close Seanagh fixed the Pirelli cap back on her head as she was presented with the first place trophy, she lifted it up in the air, wiping the tears from her face. Martin was given the constructors trophy, resulting in a loud cheer from the McLaren team beneath them. Seb and Kimi were presented their trophies before they started spraying the champagne. Seanagh picked up the bottle and went over and sprayed Martin with champagne, before both Seb and Kimi poured champagne all over her. This would easily go down as the best day of her life.

*  *  *

Jenson had gotten changed into his rocket red McLaren victory t-shirt and headed back out to the front of the McLaren garage, where everyone would be waiting on him for the team photo. Jenson was the last to arrive and took his seat on the tarmac next to Martin He looked over at Seanagh, who was still smiling, Jenson looked down and smiled before looking at the camera and cheering for the team photos. Once the photos had been taken he stood up and hugged Seanagh again, he couldn’t have been more proud of her.

“Ow Jenson...” She laughed as Jenson pushed himself off her.

“Sorry” The team began to disperse, Seanagh was still holding her first place trophy. “So, are you coming to the after party tonight?”

“Yeah of course I am! Did you really need to ask Jenson?” She smirked; Jenson had noticed that they were completely alone.

“Great! So Um...” Jenson put his hands in his pockets, the fact that they were alone meant something. Jenson just had to find the right words to say.

“Yeah?” Jenson looked up and his heart began to race.

“Hey! You guys should be heading back to the hotel!” Richard called over to them, waving them over to the direction of the paddock. Jenson and Seanagh both sighed, walking over to join him.

“So where are they holding the after party then?” Seanagh asked.

“Somewhere in the hotel, you both just meet me in the lobby and I’ll take you there” Richard smirked when they had arrived at the hotel.

“Well, I’ll see you later Jense” Seanagh walked over to the nearest lift, still carrying her trophy in her hands.

*  *  *

Seanagh walked into the hotel lobby with Raven and Kimi, they had decided to go along to the party with her so she wasn’t walking in alone. Seanagh saw Richard standing in the hotel lobby; he smiled and waved to her once he saw her. He pointed to the lift, so Seanagh stopped and turned round and headed toward the lift, her pale gold heels clicking along the floor and the hem of her strapless gold dress fluttering just above her knees. Seanagh was dressed in gold from her necklace, to the dress and the shoes and even down to the nail polish at the end of her fingers. The lift went right up to the hotel’s roof top bar, the lift doors opened and Seanagh was greeted with cheers from her team of engineers, they must have been waiting for her since the party had started. She walked over to the bar with them, buying the first round of drinks.

“Well, well, someone’s dressed for the occasion” Seanagh looked over her shoulder and saw Jenson smiling at her.

“The same could be said for you, what’s with the suit?” Seanagh brushed her fingers over the lapel of Jenson’s suit jacket. Jenson looked at her with a playful smirk, before pulling her up to dance.

*  *  *

Raven took hold of Kimi’s hand as she led him toward the bar for another round of drinks, her black chandelier earrings trying not to get tangled in the lose strands of hair that had fallen out of her pristine bun. She smoothed down her black dress as her bright red heels clicked along the floor as she approached the bar.

“Two Jager bomb-Red Bull shots please” Raven giggled, throwing money down on the bar as she was handed the two shots, she handed one to Kimi, who downed it the second he got it.

“I’m Finnish, you think I can’t handle my drink” He laughed, kissing Raven’s cheek.

“I wasn’t saying that, I was just-” Kimi kissed Raven mid-sentence, almost making her drop her empty shot glass. Kimi pulled away and looked down at his girlfriend smirking, pulling her in for another kiss.

“I love you Raven” He murmured against her lips, Raven looked into his eyes with a wide smile.

“I love you too Kimi”

*  *  *

By two o‘clock in the morning the party had finished, Seanagh had managed not to drink too much, so she was able to walk back to her hotel room in her heels that surprisingly weren’t killing her feet - she was happy for that.

“Ugh, why did the party have to finish. I was just starting to enjoy myself” Seanagh whined, Jenson and Paul were walking with her back to her hotel room. Both men had a hold on her from each side to prevent her from falling over, not that she would have done.

“Because... we all know what happens when you have too much to drink” Paul looked over at Jenson who burst out laughing.

“Yeah, what happened in Monaco again?” Jenson looked down at Seanagh before laughing again. Seanagh scowled at them both.

“Remind me again why I like you two?” Paul and Jenson didn’t reply as they had both fell to the ground in fits of drunken laughter. Seanagh looked down at the two Brits whilst tapping her foot. Eventually they both stopped laughing and pulled themselves up off the floor.

“Oh Seanagh, you love me really” Jenson hugged her in the middle of the corridor, a wide smile on his face.

“Yeah I guess I do” Seanagh patted him on the back; she looked over her shoulder and saw that Paul was standing by his hotel room door.

“I’ll see you guys at the airport in the morning” Paul waved and closed the door behind him, leaving both McLaren drivers standing in the corridor, still holding onto each other. They looked at each other with wide eyes, silence surrounding them. Before Seanagh knew it, she was in Jenson’s hotel room, sitting on the balcony drinking a glass of wine as they both discussed the season so far. Jenson was yet to win a race, but even then the car felt so much slower than it did back in Australia. Both divers had yet another couple of shots of vodka as they both collapsed on the bed in roaring laughter.

“I can’t be bothered to move, can I just stay here?” Seanagh looked up at Jenson, who had just taken off his shirt.

“Fine... but you’re staying on _that_ side of the bed” Jenson climbed in as Seanagh kicked off her heels.

“I know, I know...” She lay her head down on the pillow looking over at her team mate. The fact that they were sharing a bed seemed somewhat normal. “Night Jenson”

“Night Seanagh” Jenson curled up beside her, holding her hand tightly as they both fell asleep.

*  *  *

Raven woke up in the morning cuddled up next to Kimi, after a few moments she sat up and stretched her arms, she looked out the window and saw the most beautiful sunrise, it must have been about six o’clock in the morning but she didn’t really care – she had Kimi.

“Good morning” Raven felt Kimi’s fingers trail down her back, resulting in a small chuckle from the Finn. “You’re so beautiful in the morning”

“Kimi...” She giggled laying back down next to him.

“Yes” He smirked, kissing her softly.

“Nothing...” She trailed off, running her fingers across the tattoo on his right forearm. “I just wish we could stay here forever” Raven rested her head on Kimi’s shoulder, looking up at him in wonder.

“It’s only six in the morning; we could sleep for a little longer...” Kimi looked at Raven with tired eyes, tucking loose strands of hair behind her ear before kissing her again.

“Okay” Raven whispered in reply, intertwining her finger’s with Kimi’s as they drifted back to sleep.

*  *  *

Seanagh woke up the next morning with a pounding head in a bed that wasn’t hers. She opened her eyes and saw that her head was resting on another man’s bare shoulder, her nose filled with the smell of Hugo Boss cologne, her eyes drifted down to her hand, which was resting on the hand of the man she was sleeping with, her fingers resting in the gaps between his, his thumb brushing across hers. The man’s right hand was resting on the small of her back. Seanagh couldn’t remember much of the night before, not after she went into Jenson’s hotel room... Her eyes darted up to the man’s face – it was Jenson. She bit down on her lip to refrain from gasping in shock. _Jenson, why am I in bed with Jenson?!_ Her eyes widened as she tried to remember the events of last night, but she couldn’t remember a thing. Looking down Seanagh saw she was still dressed, which came as a relief. Jenson groaned, attempting to sit up, completely forgetting that Seanagh was there.

“Ah!” Jenson jumped out of the bed, his eyes darting between Seanagh and the shirt that lay crumpled on the floor. “Seanagh! What are you doing here?” He asked in shock, fumbling with the buttons on his shirt as he attempted to put it back on.

“I could ask myself the same question” Seanagh ran her hands through her hair, looking up at Jenson in curiosity. “But I have got no idea how or why I ended up here” She stood up, putting on her gold heels as she crossed the room, starting at Jenson intently. “But, let’s just say that...”

“This” Jenson pointed at himself and Seanagh “Never gets spoken of again”

“Right” Seanagh nodded, pressing the palm of her hand to her head.

“Hangover?” Jenson asked, taking the time to re-do the buttons on his shirt properly.

“Yeah...” Seanagh picked up her bag from the nearby table, looking over at the door. “Well I’m going to go and I’ll see you later” Seanagh walked over to the door, Jenson following close behind her.

“Yep, see you at breakfast” Jenson opened the door for her, waving at her awkwardly once she was in the corridor. Once Seanagh was back in the safety of her room she slumped against the door, trying to remember the events of the night before.


	23. Summer Break: Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Summer Break begins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next chapter, next one will be up tomorrow

_Sunday 4 th July – Monte Carlo_

 Nico had finally decided – after much contemplation – to leave the sanctuary of his apartment and walk through the streets of Monte Carlo, he’d had enough of moping around feeling sorry for himself. Monaco was full of opportunity – he might even meet the woman of his dreams. Well, if Jenson and Paul both met that description then Nico had a _lot_ of thinking to do. Both men were laughing over coffee, stuffing his hands into his pockets Nico decided to join them.

“Hey guys, mind if I join you?” Paul and Jenson looked up at him smiling; they both stood up and greeted him with wide smiles.

“So... Britney finally decided to make an appearance” Jenson smirked, lightly hitting Nico on the arm.

“Very finny Jenson...” Jenson laughed before ordering Nico a coffee in fluent French. “Coffee shop French huh?” Jenson replied with a nod, glancing over at Paul. “So Paul, how’s preparation for Jenson’s triathlon going? Jenson told me that you were taking part this year”

“Alright I guess, I don’t know how you two can manage to do those things more than once!” Jenson chuckled at the Scots reply, patting him on the shoulder.

“The same thing DC told me a couple of years ago...” Jenson cleared his throat “Now Jenson, are you crazy, or is there something funny in your coffee?” Jenson imitated David in the worst Scottish accent that he’d heard, but all three of them laughed as Nico was given his coffee, along with a quizzical look from the waitress. Silence fell over the conversation as Paul looked as if he was contemplating on something to say.

“Yeah... Nico now that you’re here... tell me what you think about this picture” Paul handed over his phone much to Jenson’s dismay, on the screen was a picture of Jenson and Seanagh in Hungary. “The next one’s better though” Nico scrolled through to the next photo – Jenson and Seanagh again, but this time at some red carpet event, standing closely together, smiling brightly. Nico looked at the photos closely and he felt jealous – Jenson had someone when Nico didn’t. He shrugged his shoulders, handing Paul back his phone.

“They look pretty close to me...”

“See, I told you Jenson. You can’t hide it to save yourself” Paul smiled, Jenson looked down sighing.

“Jenson can’t hide what?” Nico asked cluelessly, sipping on his now warm coffee.

“Jenson fancies Seanagh” Jenson lunged over and hit Paul’s arm before looking around. Nico’s eyes widened, even though he knew already, hearing it came as a bit of a shock.

“I don’t...”

“Jenson you do don’t lie” Paul wouldn’t stop teasing Jenson after that, bringing it up at every possible moment, Jenson defending himself on numerous occasions saying that Seanagh wasn’t his girlfriend. Nico would occasionally laugh along with the Scot, with Jenson threatening to crash into them at every race for the rest of the season – not that he would of course. Between those moments of laughing at his friend, Nico’s mind would drift back to the thoughts that had kept him in his apartment for the past week. He wasn’t allowed to think about it for long as Jenson and Paul dragged him down to the marina, Nico had to almost force himself to look happy. _She’ll probably be in Switzerland right now, with him..._

“Oi Nico, you listening?” Nico looked up at Jenson shaking his head. “Well... I was saying that you should come down to Luton Hoo next weekend, do the triathlon if you’re interested”

“Well...” Nico paused; he couldn’t be bothered with any triathlon stuff, all he wanted to do right now was get back to the racing. “I’ll see, depends if Ross will allow me time off to go” Nico shrugged, looking out over the sea.

“Okay, don’t push yourself” Jenson offered him a friendly smile, it was clear that there was something on Jenson’s mind – most likely a certain driver... Nico’s thoughts trailed off again – he hadn’t been able to properly concentrate on anything since Germany, since... everything that had happened on that Thursday. After a couple of hours with Jenson and Paul, Nico decided to excuse him self – using a crappy excuse that both Brits believed, much to Nico’s surprise. Nico found himself back in his apartment, watching a replay of last year’s grand prix in China – the race that gave Nico his first win. He was a different man compared to the Nico Rosberg that raced last year over the last few months he had fallen in love and had his heart broken. Life was really crap to Nico sometimes.

*  *  *

It had began to rain again back in London, the sky was a dark grey and Seanagh had walked into her flat dripping wet from her run. She really envied Raven just now, she had just sent Seanagh a picture of a beautiful – and sunny – mountain landscape. It looked like that going out with Kimi had its perks – one of them being warm and dry. Seanagh sighed picking up the post from the floor, sifting through the letters quickly as she was desperate on a hot shower. _Junk mail, more junk, postcard from Monaco (most likely from Jenson)... what’s that?_ Seanagh looked at the final letter in her hand, it been through air mail with Seanagh name and address written in handwriting that Seanagh failed to recognise. She tore it open finding a letter and plane tickets to Zurich. _Who and what?!_ She read the letter – which was relatively short and had words either scored out or covered up with tipex, along with the occasional coffee stain on the paper.

 

_Hey Seanagh,_

_I was thinking that – if you wanted to – you could come over to Switzerland next week (I already got tickets for a flight over on Monday if you decide to come over). After all, I’m waiting on my hair dye, and a bet is a bet._

_Hope to see you soon,_

_Sebastian xx_

 

Seanagh couldn’t decide what to be surprised at; the fact that Seb had invited her to Switzerland, or the fact that he had put kisses on the end of the letter. She picked up her phone, texting him.

 _‘So, whisking me off to Switzerland are you? ;)’_ She didn’t have to wait long for a reply.

_‘Only if you want to come over’_

_‘Sure, I guess I’ll see you on Monday :)’_

_‘See you then’_

Seanagh put her phone in her pocket and picked up her purse and headed back out of her flat, Seanagh had to buy some hair dye, and Seb was right – a bet was a bet.

*  *  *

_Monday 5 th July – Switzerland_

Sebastian groaned as a loud buzz rang near his ear, he sat up and looked round flustered when he realised that he had fallen asleep on the sofa. Looking at the time on his phone he realized that he was meant to leave half an hour ago. Cursing in German he went over to his phone calling Kimi.

“What do you want Seb?”

“Kimi! I uh...” He mumbled the rest of the sentence in German, his mind unable to translate what he wanted to say into English.

“I’m in the car on the way to the airport; you can pick her up from my house. Just let me know when you’re coming over” Kimi hung up, Seb still held the phone to his ear in a stunned silence, he still had half of the house to sort out, and Seanagh’s flight would be arriving in just over an hour. Biting his lip Seb looked around his house, half of the rooms were tidy, but the other half... Seb didn’t want to think about the other half. _I’ve got two hours..._

*  *  *

It had just gone twelve when Seanagh walked into the arrival lounge at the airport in Zurich. The fact that she was in Switzerland excited her, she looked through the brown lenses of her sunglasses for Sebastian, but he wasn’t there. She did however see Kimi – Seanagh knew that Kimi and Seb lived nearby to each other – so she walked over to say hello.

“Hello Kimi” Pushing her sunglasses on top of her head in an effortless move as she greeted the older Finn, her suitcase in one hand and her beige handbag resting in the crook of the opposite elbow.

“Hello Seanagh” He smiled at her – something Seanagh found odd – as he leaned forward to pick up her suitcase.

“Woah... Kimi, what are you doing?” She leaned back, glancing at him.

“Seb couldn’t make it, he was still sorting out his house so he asked me to take you to my place until he’s ready” Seanagh looked at him surprised, firstly that was probably the longest sentence that Kimi had ever said to her – but she was also surprised that Seb couldn’t make it, despite the fact that he promised her that he’d be there.

“Okay...” Seanagh let Kimi take her suitcase as he led her towards his car, slamming down the boot once the large suitcase was inside. Seanagh couldn’t help but admire Kimi’s car, despite it not being a flashy sports car which was what she expected, the white Renault was nice.

“Are you getting in, or are you just going to stand there?” Seanagh shook her head, forcing a few curls into her eyes as she got into the front passenger seat. Kimi was still on the phone when he started the car. “Look... Seb I’m in the car... Just call me when you’re ready” Kimi hung up and threw his phone onto the back seat. “Sorry about that... he can be a real pain in the ass sometimes” Seanagh nodded as Kimi drove the car out of the airport car park, taking the road that lead out of Zurich. Kimi had told her that it would be another half hour before they arrived at Kimi’s, and goodness knows how long before Seb picked her up, at least Raven was at Kimi’s place, that gave Seanagh some reassurance.

*  *  *

Raven delicately sipped on her coffee whilst waiting on Kimi to come home – he told her that he had to run an errand for Seb and that he’d be back in about an hour. This had given Raven enough time to pick her outfit for the day – a pale blue denim dress (and matching nail polish) with black suede studded heels with her favourite silver necklace, the one that Kimi had gotten her for her birthday. Raven had gone upstairs to grab her phone charger, and when she was back in the kitchen she saw Seanagh sitting at the table drinking tea. For someone who didn’t usually make an effort to look nice while travelling – she was dressed immaculately wearing a pink dress that went down to just above her knees and brown leather wedges teamed with gold jewellery and matching pink nail polish.  Raven watched her intently as she walked down the stairs.

“What are you doing here?” Seanagh jumped up out of her seat, looking up in shock.

“Um... visiting you” Seanagh smiled weakly as Raven saw right through the excuse that had clearly been made up on the spot.

“You’re such a poor liar... still it’s good to see you” Raven giggled as she pulled Seanagh into a hug, for whatever reason Seanagh was here Raven was glad to see her. “No really, why are you here?” Seanagh stayed silent as loud male laughter was heard from down the corridor, she looked down blushing as both Sebastian and Kimi appeared. Raven looked at Seb in shock.

“I invited her before you ask. How are you Raven?” Sebastian smiled at both girls, his eyes lingering at Seanagh’s appearance for a brief moment.

“Fine, just... fine” Both men walked past her and briefly left the room as Raven looked at Seanagh with wide excited eyes.

“Before you ask there is nothing going, he just invited me over and that’s that” Raven raised her eyebrows and Seb and Kimi entered the room. Seb cleared his throat, looking over at Seanagh with a nervous smile.

“You ready?”

“Yeah... it was nice to see you Rae, oh and thanks for the lift Kimi and the tea” Seanagh glanced over her shoulder as she left with Seb, Raven waiting until his car had left the drive way before she looked at Kimi in wonder. He merely wrapped his arms round her smirking.

“So... we’re finally alone” Kimi sighed before planting kisses down Raven’s neck.

“Fine...” She sighed, taking Kimi’s hand as she led him upstairs.

*  *  *

The drive over to Seb’s place didn’t take long – something that both Seb and Seanagh were thankful for. Neither of them knew what was on the radio (most likely something in German since Sebastian was able to understand every word) but both Seanagh and Seb were both tapping either their hands or their feet to the beat of the music as Seb pulled his car into his driveway. Seanagh’s eyes widened once she saw his house – four floors, too much outdoor space that Seanagh would have known what to do with and surrounded by pine trees for privacy – it was everything that Seanagh had expected, and yet she was still surprised. The car pulled to a stop and Seb and Seanagh both sat there for a moment, Seanagh eyes fixed on the house and Seb’s darting between that and the woman sitting next to him.

“Seb... that’s can’t be your place” Her eyes scanned the building in front of her in disbelief.

“It is” Seb laughed nervously. “I’ll take you inside, give you a tour” Sebastian got out of his car and pulled Seanagh’s case out of the boot, Seanagh got out of the car and stood next to the door. _There’s no way that this place is his._ “What’s wrong?” He asked her with a reassuring smile.

“I never expected your place to be so... grand” A warm summer breeze wafted through her hair , Seb chuckled from behind her and placed his hand on the small of her back as he lead her into the house. The first thing that she noticed was the view, in front of her was an entirely glass wall showing the mountains and the large lake that surrounded Sebastian’s house. The floor was shiny black tiles, except from the living room which was a cream carpet. The living room also had the largest TV that Seanagh had ever seen; it took up a good five feet of wall space – at least. “Woah...” Was all Seanagh could manage to say. _This place is incredible._

“Yeah it’s not bad, it’s a shame I can’t spend more time here. Switzerland is a...” Seb trailed off, although Seanagh wasn’t looking at him, she could feel him looking at her “...really beautiful place”

“Well... are you going to stare at me give me a tour like you said?” Sebastian smiled a charming grin and gestured his hand for Seanagh to follow him. It was safe to say that Seb’s place was as grand on the inside as it was on the outside; the majority of the outdoor walls were glass – showing off the beautiful view that could only be found in Switzerland. The steps leading up to the first, second and third floors were black to match the floors and were made of granite, Seb lead Seanagh along the corridor ad opened the door to one of the bedrooms, which was about half the size of the large living room downstairs. The black tiles on the floor had been replaced by a pale cream-almost white carpet – identical to the one in the living room and the wall to Seanagh’s right was just glass which lead on to her own balcony (with cream curtains for privacy) and the remaining walls were white, to her left was shiny black built in wardrobes and a medium size black leather sofa (opposite another plasma screen TV), the bed was in the middle of the room – king size with a black frame (including a built in bedside table with square lights that extended to the length of the bed) with white bed sheets and pillows, with smaller red cushions and a black and red bed throw on the bed. Seb cleared his throat as he set Seanagh’s large red suitcase by the sofa, looking at Seanagh slightly worried.

“This is your room, if you don’t like it-”

“It’s lovely Seb, it’ll do just fine” Seanagh smiled at him reassuringly, making him sigh with a small smile. “I can tell you like these colours”

“Well...” Seb began ringing his hands together nervously “I bought the house like this, and I don’t really have the time to redecorate. But I like it. I’ll show you the rest of the house” The tour continued and Seanagh was shown the rest of the house, the uneasy tension Sebastian was showing before had vanished when they reached the roof top balcony (which was roughly the size of the living room).  “I guess that’s my house...” Seb looked out at the Mountain View and sighed, Seanagh couldn’t keep her eyes off him.

“Well, it’s lovely. But, I could-”

“You want tea? I’ll make you one. I’ll bring it up, I won’t be long” Seb rushed back inside and was gone before Seanagh could finish her sentence. She was alone with her though at that moment, and they went back to Germany, when Seb and Seanagh had agreed to the bet.

_“Well, let’s say, in Hungary I beat you in the race, you have to do some kind of... forfeit. And vice versa, if you beat me”_

_“Okay...” She paused, thinking of how to take advantage of the golden opportunity Seb had just handed her “If I win, you have to dye your hair... platinum blond” Seb’s eyes widened in horror, bringing his hand up to his light brown hair._

_“And if I win...then you have to...” He paused, unable to think of anything. “I know” He clicked his fingers. “You have to accompany me to the Autosport awards at the end of the year”_

_“Fine”_

_“But say you win and I get on the podium” He smirked at the thought that was in his mind. “You have to kiss me” Seanagh’s eyes widened, she didn’t particularly like the idea of having to kiss Sebastian again._

_“Alright then, but you take me out to dinner if I get on the podium and you win. Deal?” She extended her hand, which Sebastian very happily shook._

_“It’s a bet”_

_Oh god..._ Seanagh had forgotten about her side of the bargain, Seb had finished third in Hungary, meaning she had to kiss him. Still, there was the platinum blond hair dye in Seanagh’s suitcase. _I can’t wait to see the look on his face._ There was always that to look forward to. 


	24. Summer Break: Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next chapter, next one will be up on Monday

_Friday 8 th August – Baar, Switzerland_

Seb was in the middle of cooking breakfast – Bacon, sausages... a full English fry up minus the tomatoes, baked beans and black pudding. The past few days had been great, the most that he had done was watch Monty Python movies with Seanagh in the living room, Seb felt that he had really gotten to know her over the past few days – there was more to her than met the eye, and he liked that. She was funny, and smart and...

“Morning Seb!” He jumped as he turned round and saw Heikki walking into the kitchen. “Cooking for two? Did you get my telepathic message?”

“Heikki, we know Finnish people and humour don’t work very well” Seb smirked, carefully placing two rashers of bacon on a large plate.

“Works for you and you’re German... so who’s the guest? A woman” Seb stayed silent, Heikki’s eyes widened. “Oh you... how long as this been going on for?”

“There’s nothing going on, she’s just a friend” Seb placed the plate on the breakfast bar and reached for a large glass and opened a large carton of fresh orange juice, flicking a loose piece of fluff off his grey t-shirt.

“I’ll go then, I was just dropping off your new eating plan. Starting next week, along with the new exercise programme” Heikki placed many bits of paper in front of Seb, who sighed and ruffled his hair.

“Thanks Heikki”

“And in Milton Keynes we can have a beer” His voice dropped to a whisper “And you can tell me who this girl is, will I get to meet her?” At that very moment, Seanagh chose to walk in, a beaming smile on her face and her hands behind her back. Heikki looked between Seb and Seanagh in surprise.

“Hey Heikki, I thought I could hear your dulcet tones from upstairs” She smirked and stood in front of Heikki, Seb was wishing that the ground would swallow him whole. He knew that Heikki was smart enough to put two and two together, and there was a small chance that he’d tell Britta, and there was a definite chance that Britta would tell Christian. _Heikki please, keep your mouth shut!_ Heikki was in deep conversation with Seanagh and he left a few minutes later, giving Sebastian a warning look before he left.   _I know I’m crazy; I don’t need that kind of look to tell me that._ “Well, that was unexpected. Still, always nice to have a catch up” Seanagh pushed away her empty plate and picked something up from the floor. “But anyway Seb, I’ve got a little... present for you, to say thanks for having me here” Seanagh smirked as she walked over to him.

“What is it?” Seb asked apprehensively.

“Just... close your eyes and hold out your hands” Seb did so straight away and felt that a box of some kind was placed in his hands. _What on earth?_ “Okay, open your eyes” Seb opened his eyes and he was met with a box of blond hair dye. _The bet, I almost forgot._ Seanagh laughed as Seb’s face was filled with a look of horror. _She said blond... not Heikki blond._ Seb sighed, catching his reflection of his light brown hair, he knew that it wasn’t staying that colour for much longer.

“A bet’s a bet” Seb repeated the words he had put in his letter. He was left wondering what made him think that it would be such a good idea.

“And since I won, you have to do your forfeit first. I’m assuming you know how to-”

“Does it have to be this colour?” He pleaded with her; Seanagh simply smiled back, her eyes sparkling playfully.

“Yep, now go. We can worry about the other stuff later” Seanagh pushed Seb towards the stairs and he climbed them slowly. _It won’t look that bad, plus it’ll wash out eventually... I hope._

*  *  *

Seanagh stood by Seb’s bedroom door waiting for him to appear with his new blond hair, she was still waiting for him to find out that the dye was permanent, and that it would take a few months to grow out. _Revenge is sweet._ A few curses in German were heard from Seb’s room as Seanagh had to cover her mouth to prevent her laughter from being heard.

“SEANAGH!!” She giggled, waiting a few moments before replying.

“Yeah”

“I know you’re waiting outside, just... come in I know you want to see” Sebastian sighed with defeat. Seanagh opened the door hesitantly and entered the room that was unknown to her; it was twice the size of Seanagh’s bedroom. “I’m in here” She followed his voice to the bathroom were she found a blond Seb standing looking in the mirror wearing a pair of jeans, but no shirt. His hair was no longer brown and was a very, _very_ bright blonde. She burst into fits of uncontrollable laughter; the forfeit had turned out way better than expected.

“Wow Seb... how much dye... did you use?” She asked though fits of giggles, leaning against the black tiled wall for support so she didn’t fall over.

“All of it”

“Wow... I’m a genius. We should do this more often. I cannot wait to see the look on everyone’s faces when they see you in Belgium!” Seanagh walked out of the bathroom laughing quietly to herself.

“Well if you’re so happy you won’t mind on delivering your side of the bargain” Seanagh turned round and looked at Sebastian in shock.

“Ugh fine!” She walked over and kissed his cheek, despite everything she couldn’t kiss him. Not when she knew she liked someone else, even if she couldn’t have him. Seb looked at her as if to say ‘that’s not what I meant’ and he placed his hand on Seanagh’s waist meaning she couldn’t leave until she had kissed Seb properly. She took in a deep breath and went up on her tiptoes slightly as she leaned in to kiss Seb. It felt better than when he had kissed her in Britain in June, but despite the fact that she liked Seb, the kiss had no spark. It was just a kiss. And that was all she wanted, knowing that there would always be that someone else in McLaren overalls.

*  *  *

Sebastian stood in the kitchen tapping his foot on the floor staring up at the clock. _First it’s five minutes, then ten minutes, now it’s been fifteen..._ His eyes remained fixed on the clock as he heard the clicking of heeled shoes down the granite steps and along the tiled floor. Seb turned his head and his jaw almost fell to the floor – he almost didn’t recognise her. Seb’s eyes travelled from the bright red shoes, up her somehow elongated legs (how that was possible considering how short she was) to the hem of the electric blue lace dress. Her hair had been curled and her lips were a bright cherry red. _Wow..._

“What’s wrong? Is it too much, if you want I can go change” Seanagh pointed behind her, beginning to turn round.

“No Seanagh you don’t need to. You look beautiful” He gently placed his arm on her shoulder as she turned round, stopping her instantly. “We should be going, our reservation is in forty five minutes and the traffic in Zurich tends to be bad around this time” Seanagh nodded and followed Seb out of the house and toward his beige car that stood parked in the driveway.

“How many of these cars do you even have Seb?” Seanagh asked, her eyes roaming the grey leather seats.

“A few” Seb smirked clicking in his seatbelt as he started the ignition, debating on whether or not to put the roof down on the car, since Seanagh had no idea that it was a convertible car. But there was the possibility of being caught by the press so Sebastian decided not to bother as he drove the car out of the driveway.

*  *  *

Being taken out to dinner was the last thing Raven expected.  This was by far the best restaurant that Kimi had ever taken her to, and she had already been treated to one of the best wines the restaurant had to offer – according to the waiter. Once Raven had finally made up her mind about what she wanted she told the waiter her order, who sighed with relief as he took away their menus. Kimi looked at her with a knowing smile.

“I’m sorry, I’m just very indecisive” Raven looked at Kimi and sipped on her wine, Kimi just rolled his eyes and chuckled. A few moments later, the sounds of heels clicking against the floor and quiet laughter passed Raven and Kimi’s table, Raven looked over her shoulder and saw a short brunette in a stunning electric blue dress and a man that wasn’t much taller with very bright blond hair.

“That... is that Seb?”  Kimi squinted his eyes at the couple; Raven had to stop himself from laughing, it was Seb, with laughable blond hair. “How he managed to pull someone with hair like that...” He paused, his green-blue eyes widening in shock.  Kimi mumbled in Finnish and almost dropped his drink.

“Kimi, you know I don’t understand Fin-”

“He’s with Seanagh” Raven looked over her shoulder again, sure enough; Raven’s best friend was sitting opposite Sebastian, her jaw dropped to the floor. “When did that happen?” Raven turned back around and met Kimi’s questioning gaze.

“Don’t look at me I don’t know anything!” Raven couldn’t stop glancing over her shoulder. _Why is she here with Seb when she’s-_

“Your food” Raven’s thoughts were cut off when a bowl of steaming hot pasta was placed in front of her, at that moment in time eating was more important, she’d have time to question Seanagh later.

*  *  *

An hour had passed, every time Raven would try to corner Seanagh she’d either dart off somewhere or someone would walk in front of her, meaning Raven wasn’t able to speak to her. She was now in the bathroom fixing her hair in front of the mirror when Seanagh walked in, her feet freezing in place.

“H-Hi Rae” She smiled, trying to act natural. “This is a surprise”

“Yeah, I can’t decide what’s more surprising, the fact we’re both at the same restaurant or the fact that you’re here with Seb” Raven wanted to get to the point, she knew that something must have been going on the moment Raven saw Seanagh in Kimi’s kitchen.

“Yeah...” Seanagh laughed nervously, looking down at her feet.

“So, why are you on a date with Seb?”

“It’s not a date, we’re just... here as friends”

“Oh I don’t think he wants to be ‘just friends’ with you” Raven rolled her eyes; she’d heard plenty of storied about Seb from Kimi. “He likes you, in case you hadn’t noticed. And you don’t look like you’ve dressed up for nothing” Rave looked at Seanagh and sighed. “Besides I thought you liked-”

“Don’t” Seanagh replied sternly. “I... can’t talk about him right now”

“Why?” Raven asked curiously

“Because, I think that him and me are getting too close. That’s all. Look I have to go, I’ll see you later” Seanagh left as quickly as she came in, and by the time Raven was back with Kimi, both Seanagh and Seb had left.

“Hey, you want any dessert?” Kimi smiled looking up from the dessert menu. “They have really nice cake here” _Cake._ That reminded Raven of Jenson, which reminded her of Seanagh. _How could they be getting ‘too close’?_ That just made no sense.

“Uh yeah sure, cake sounds great”


	25. The Racing Resumes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The 2013 season resumes after summer break in Belgium

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So it's Monday, and as promised here is the next chapter, again I would like to thank everyone who has read this so far, you're all awesome :)

_Thursday 22 nd August – Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps_

Nico grinned walking out into the late summer sunshine, since he wasn’t doing the driver press conference he didn’t have much press to do after the track walk. So he could go back to the hotel and chill before free practice the next day. Since Nico was a little ahead of his team of engineers he had been told to wait at the bottom of Eau Rouge while they got themselves organised. After walking out of turn one Nico put on his silver Mercedes team cap to try and shield his eyes from the bright sunlight. Once his eyes had adjusted he saw two people standing at the bottom of Eau Rouge, they weren’t from Mercedes as their uniforms were the wrong colour, but when Nico saw ‘Vodafone’ written in red writing across their backs he knew who it was, so he went over to say hi. Both drivers were in deep conversation with each other – either glancing up at the top of Eau Rouge or at each other – and it took Nico a couple of attempts before he got their attention.

“Hey there Nico” Jenson smiled at him whilst fixing his dark sunglasses over his eyes.

“Nico!” Seanagh squealed and enveloped Nico in a friendly hug “How was summer break?”

“Uhh...” Nico tried to think of how he could summarize it without sounding too negative.  “Good, got some rest, spent some time at the factory... what about you?”

“Great” She replied with a bright smile “I finally got my company car last week”

“What did you get?” Nico asked, sipping on his bottled water.

“A McLaren 12C, in white” She grinned.

“I saw it before parked by your motor home, I wondered whose car it was, it’s nice” Nico smiled at her, he looked over his shoulder and saw his team of engineers walking towards him. Nico turned his attention back to the McLaren drivers, Seanagh’s eyes were fixed on her feet, with one of them resting on the beginning of the incline, while Jenson’s eyes were fixed on the sky, Nico couldn’t help notice that there was some form of awkward tension between the two of them that hadn’t been there before summer break.  Either that or it was tension between McLaren and Mercedes, they were very few points difference between the teams in the constructors championship; tensions between them were higher than ever. “Well I’ll see you guys later” Nico smiled and waved bye to his fellow drivers as he walked with his engineers to the top of Eau Rouge. For Nico the start of the second half of the season meant change, a new start. The car was in a good place, and Nico felt at the top of his game and he wanted to change that determination into points, podiums and even wins. Anything was worth a shot if it meant winning over Raven.

*  *  *

Kimi had always loved Spa; he had won there four times over his Formula One career, and he wanted to make it five times this weekend. A win here would help close the gap to Vettel in the championship, after all he was 36 points behind Seb, Lotus were lagging behind in the chase for the constructors title however but Kimi had known for a while that it would be very difficult for any team to beat Red Bull. Kimi also knew that his time was running out at Lotus, his contract would run out at the end of the year and he didn’t have anything in place, it didn’t help that he hadn’t been paid yet but Kimi wanted to keep that quiet. Along with the fact that he had been speaking to Ferrari about a return to the team, the idea did sound crazy at first, but anywhere was better than Lotus right now.

*  *  *

Jenson had stopped walking when he was roughly half-way round the circuit; he was part way between turns twelve and thirteen and had decided to take the time just to take everything in. The sky was beginning to cloud over, but it was still warm and sunny and everything was just...

“Ow!” Jenson was almost knocked to the ground as someone ran into him; he’d managed to catch that person in his arms to prevent them from falling over.

“Easy there, are you alright?” Jenson asked, he noticed it was a woman that had ran into him, a woman in a McLaren uniform.

“Yeah... Oh Jenson I am so sorry” Seanagh looked up at Jenson and apologized with a pleading gaze. Jenson chuckled and gently patted her on the shoulder, releasing her from his grasp.

“Don’t worry about it, are you alright. You looked almost green before” Jenson smiled as him and Seanagh began to walk towards turn thirteen.

“Yeah I’m fine now, Eau Rouge is a lot scarier in person that’s all. I’m not really a fan of steep inclines” Seanagh stuffed her hands in her pockets, her and Jenson’s arms brushing against each other as they walked side by side.

“It’s your first race here, you’ll get used it eventually, just wait until you see Austin, it’s a lot steeper” Jenson reassured his team mate with a smile.

“I suppose, but the TV cameras don’t do Eau Rouge justice, even standing in the grandstand nearby you don’t really get a good idea of how steep it is until you’re actually standing in front of it”

“You’ve been here before?” Jenson asked surprised, he never knew Seanagh had been to a Formula One grand prix before she started with McLaren this year, he didn’t know much about her past to be honest. And she seemed to want to keep it that way with some things.

“Yeah I came here in 1999 with my Dad, I was ten at the time; it was a late birthday present” She smiled, her eyes sparkling with a past memory, one that appeared to make her happy. But that only lasted a few seconds.

“1999!? Now that was a while ago. Who won that one?” Jenson looked up at the sky, 1999 _was_ a while ago; it made Jenson feel old compared to his twenty four year old team mate.

“DC I think... Yeah it was David” They walked through turns thirteen and fourteen and headed towards turns fifteen and sixteen. Jenson would have to go back to the paddock after the track walk to do press interviews; it would mean that he wouldn’t see the rest of the team until round about dinner time. Jenson would occasionally point things out to Seanagh as they went round the last few corners; don’t do this, make sure you do that... She was hastily scribbling in her notebook, taking in everything that Jenson was saying. And Jenson found it was nice to know that she felt what he was telling her was important, it made Jenson feel appreciated.

“Now, you’ve got to take it easy round this last chicane here. You need to go fast but not too fast and slow down but not too much that you allow cars to get past you” Jenson mimicked the ideal movement of the car with his hand as they went round the corners. Occasionally Seanagh would stop, crouch down and look around her, taking in her surroundings. Jenson had no idea why she did it but he found it fascinating to see her mind at work. She’d mumble things to herself not making much sense; Jenson had never met someone like Seanagh before. People like her were rare, and Jenson liked that.

“Hey JB!” Jenson awoke from his daydream and walked briskly to catch up with Seanagh, who was only two hundred metres away from him. “You looked like you were on another planet mate, are you alright?” They walked down the walkway that led into the pitlane, the narrowness of the pathway pushing them closer together.

“Yeah fine, I’m just happy to be racing again this weekend” Jenson smiled taking off his sunglasses as they walked past the Red Bull garage, running into Mark. He briefly waved to them before jogging to the garage. Seeing Mark reminded Jenson that he wouldn’t be too far behind in terms of retirement, next year Jenson would be the second oldest diver on the grid – providing he’d get a contract for next season. That was another thing he had to worry about. Still, focusing on this weekend seemed like a good place to start.

“See you Jenson, thanks for your help” Seanagh smiled and waved as she wandered off to her side of the McLaren garage, he knew that she wouldn’t be there for long, she’d be in the motor home in ten to fifteen minutes so he would probably catch her there and he needed to ask her something, something important.

*  *  *

Seanagh was annoyed, although that was an understatement. Upon her first day back at MTC after returning from Switzerland she had been dragged to Martin’s office by Jenson, and once they were there Martin had decided to ‘come clean’. He admitted to making up the no driver fraternisation rule because he was worried that something would happen between the two drivers. But when he had said that he wasn’t able to “Stop the inevitable” Seanagh couldn’t help but wonder just how obvious she was about her feelings for Jenson, she had tried to not make it obvious; acting normal around him as often as she could, although Jenson made that very difficult sometimes. Right now she was standing in the motor home trying to clear her head; being with Seb in Switzerland was great, she had gotten to spend so much time with him and she’d learned that there was more to the cheeky guy that was always seen by the press, but there was also Jenson, Seanagh didn’t even know where to start with him.

“Hey” The aforementioned Jenson greeted Seanagh with a wide smile; she returned the smile gladly as Goosebumps began to form on the back of her neck. “I uh... need to talk to you about something” Jenson scratched his upper arm nervously, biting on his lower lip as he did so.

“Sure, I need to talk to you about something as well, in private though” Jenson’s eyes widened in surprise, and after a few moments he took Seanagh’s hand and led her to a small office room on the top floor of the motor home. He locked the door and sighed, heading over to the water cooler in the corner of the room. Seanagh just stood there, trying to remember what she was going to say. Jenson walked over to her and leaned against the near-by desk; she could see the coat button tattoo on his right arm, and the muscles in that arm flexing every time he took a drink. He was unknowingly driving her crazy.

“Look Jense” She pulled her eyes down to the floor “I don’t... I’m not really happy with Martin after what happened at MTC but... I don’t know I just feel like you’re treating me differently. And I want to know why” Seanagh spoke quickly, stammering on a couple of occasions. She could barely look Jenson in the eye. Jenson stood up and put his plastic cup in the bin, he walked back over to Seanagh and placed his hands firmly on her shoulders, causing her to meet Jenson’s gaze.

“I guess... I don’t really know how to act around you now. It’s all a bit confusing” Jenson sighed.

“But can’t we just act like we were before? I mean it’s not like-”

“I don’t know if I can, not now” The suddenness and bluntness of the statement cause Seanagh to draw in a sharp intake of breath. _What did he mean? Did I do something wrong?_

“Jenson, did I-”

“It’s not you Seanagh, you’ve done nothing wrong. It’s me, you’re a great friend to me and I-” Jenson spoke with a heavy sigh; Seanagh didn’t want to be the one constantly being cut off mid sentence.

“If that’s the case, then why don’t we just pretend that what happened with Martin never happened? It can’t be that difficult surely” Seanagh’s arms were now resting on Jenson’s waist; she knew it wasn’t exactly appropriate, but Jenson’s hands were on Seanagh’s hips. They were both as bad as each other. “And about Hungary...” She trailed off, looking into the older man’s eyes. Seanagh had never noticed how blue they were until now.

“We already talked about that, and we agreed we wouldn’t mention it again” Jenson replied sternly. This wasn’t the Jenson that Seanagh knew before summer break.

“You’ve changed Jenson” Seanagh mirrored Jenson’s bleak tone, and he cracked a smile much to Seanagh’s surprise.

“Have I? You seem different as well you know, to me anyway”

“I doubt that”

“Are you sure about that sunshine?” And with one wide smile Jenson wrapped his arms round Seanagh pulling her into a tight hug, his chin resting on the top of her head, and her nose filled with the scent of Hugo Boss cologne, it was one of those hugs that neither Seanagh or Jenson wanted to pull out of. Everything was as it was before apart from one thing – nothing was stopping them from pursuing a romantic relationship anymore. Seanagh just had to choose who she really wanted.

*  *  * 

_Saturday 24 th August – Belgium, Driver’s Hotel_

Sebastian was annoyed. He was capable of pointing out his own mistakes, what he didn’t need was Helmut Marko barging into his hotel room and giving him a rough time for not getting pole position in qualifying. It had taken Seb a long time to calm down, and when he finally arrived in the dining room that had been reserved for the teams by the hotel he was met by many reactions; some didn’t even notice he was there, others glared, some just looked and very few smiled. Sighing he walked over to one of the three buffet tables and helped himself to chicken, rice and green beans in some kind of gravy. Romain passed Seb and said hi, Seb did the same and by then Romain was gone, in deep conversation with one of the McLaren girls, he couldn’t make out who it was until she laughed, her laugh was all too familiar. He knew deep down he’d never have a chance with her, there was the bet and the kiss and dinner, but nothing else accumulated from that. Jenson would always be the one getting in the way of that. Seb walked over to the Red Bull table and sat down, smiling weakly at Christian before angrily stabbing one of the bits of chicken with his fork, he could hear people across the room laughing at the blond mess that was Seb’s hair; he’d tried to be light hearted about it. But eventually being nice to the media took its toll, and Seb had decided that he’d had enough of the media and everything else, he just wanted to race, he wanted to win. And forget about the mistake that was summer break, only if he could have found it in his heart to call it a mistake because it was anything but that.

*  *  *

_Sunday 25 th August – Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps_

Seanagh would have taken ninth place if it wasn’t for Sutil making her car spin on the last corner. That was another thing to add on the list of thing that had made her really pissed off, and it seemed to be growing every day. Seanagh crossed the line in eleventh, after what was awful compared to Hungary, she was going to get eaten up by the press, she knew it. _Fucking Germans._

“Sorry about that Seanagh, we know you couldn’t have done anything to stop it. We can do better next weekend. Jenson came away with sixth. We’ll speak about the incident with Sutil later at the de-briefing” The team radio message didn’t help her mood, all Seanagh wanted to do now was go to her hotel room and sleep, not face the press for a good hour or two, go to the debriefing and greet Jenson with a smile when he scored eight points for the team when Seanagh would have gotten two if Sutil hadn’t clipped her rear wing. Her tolerance level was really being tested today. _Just under two weeks until Italy, two weeks before I have to redeem myself._


	26. The Movie Premier

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The evening of the Rush premier

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, here's the first of two chapters that will be up today (yep, two chapters, I'm feeling generous today since I've been really bad for updates this week), so I hope you'll all enjoy this one, next one will be up soon :)
> 
> On another note (in case anyone was wondering) I will definitely be carrying on with writing this, I really enjoy it and I'm really happy that you all do as well, so anyway, on with the chapter! :)

_Monday 2 nd September – North London_

It didn’t take long for Raven to come bounding down the stairs after Seanagh and Jenson had arrived back at the flat, Seanagh decided to take a mental note that she would never go suit shipping with Jenson ever again, even if he bought her a coffee, three hours looking at suits was just ridiculous in her mind.

“Did you get it? Did you-” Raven started, Seanagh held out the dress that was covered by the protective plastic to Raven, who squealed and grabbed it off her. “Thank you!”

“You’re welcome Rae” Seanagh smiled before heading into the kitchen, being met by the most unexpected surprise. “What are you doing here?” Seanagh asked Mark as he greeted her with a friendly hug.

“Just though I’d pop round, since I’m in town”

“Mark!” Jenson walked over grinning, joining in with the conversation.

“Y’alright mate?”

“Yeah good, are you coming to the premier tonight?” Jenson asked, leaning on the kitchen worktop by Seanagh’s right side.

“I was just about to ask” The three drivers talked for a little while longer before Mark said he had to leave. “So I’ll see you guys there then?”

“Yep” Seanagh and Jenson both nodded, Mark left after waving a final goodbye as he left the flat.

“Hey” Raven returned looking very pleased with herself. “I just tried on the dress; it’s perfect, thanks again for picking it up for me guys, I’m so sorry I forgot” Raven sighed as she walked into the kitchen, most likely to make herself a cup of coffee.

“It’s no problem” Jenson smiled politely, before turning his head to look at Seanagh with a knowing smirk.  Raven looked at them bemused before Seanagh pulled a shoebox wrapped in shiny silver paper out of one of her many shopping bags.

“What’s that?” Raven asked as the box was handed to her “It’s for me?”

“It’s from both of us” Seanagh began “As a good luck present for this weekend, you know for the final F3 race, Jenson and me know you’re going to win the championship anyway but-” Seanagh was cut off by Raven lunging forward to hug her. “You’re welcome” She patted Raven’s shoulder before she let go, setting the box down on the breakfast bar as she began to slowly unwrap it.

“The idea was mine...” Jenson began

“... but I picked it out” Seanagh said poking Jenson in the side with her elbow. Raven’s face glowed when she opened the box, Seanagh had picked out a bejewelled pair of pale green shoes that were the exact colour of Raven’s dress that she was wearing to the Rush premier.

“Are these...”

“You can wear them for the premier tonight, but only if you want to, I knew that they were gonna match your dress so...” Seanagh didn’t need to say anymore, she knew Raven was flattered by the gift, the look on her face said it all.

“You guys are my favourite McLaren drivers ever!” Raven hugged both Jenson and Seanagh this time, thanking them again before she ran upstairs to try the shoes on with her dress.

“We did good there” Jenson sighed, beginning to make two cups of tea.

“Yeah, we did” Seanagh also sighed, running her hands through her messy curls as she checked the time “We’ve got three hours before we need to be there” Jenson nodded, adding milk and sugar to both mugs.

“Yeah” Jenson shrugged “That’s plenty time, when we arrive the cars probably won’t be ready anyway” Seanagh rolled her eyes as she was handed her tea before she turned to go upstairs. “Where are you going?”

“To get ready!”

*  *  *

Jenson didn’t understand why it took women so long to get ready, Jenson only took an hour, ninety minutes at most; pick out a suit, have a shower, shave, get dressed, done! Jenson was leaning against the kitchen worktop looking at his watch; he figured wearing a Tag Heuer one would go down well with the sponsors, after all it was a movie premier. Raven came down the stairs shaking her head with a small laugh seconds later.

“Seanagh’s just coming, she’s just taking forever, as usual” Raven looked almost ready, she was wearing her dress along with her new shoes.

“It’s okay, I’ve gotten used to her tardiness” Jenson laughed to himself remembering when he almost knocked Seanagh’s hotel room door down in Bahrain when she had slept in on the Sunday, he was sure he would never be forgiven for that.

“Right I’m ready...” Jenson looked up, almost having to catch his breath as Seanagh walked down the stairs; Jenson almost didn’t recognise her, wearing a strapless dip hem red dress with silver detailing going across the middle. Jenson couldn’t decide on how to describe her, but he did catch himself staring. “Well...” She twirled round effortlessly in her high beige heels.

“You uh... look... nice” Jenson had to find the right words to say without sounding too obvious. _God she’s beautiful..._

“Right we need to go, we’ll see you there Rae” Seanagh looked out the window before heading over to the door, Raven waved them off before shutting the door behind them. “I haven’t told her about the cars, I can’t wait to see the look on her face” It took Jenson a few seconds to realise what Seanagh was on about.

“Oh right yeah...” Jenson trailed off as his mind floated somewhere else. Walking outside Jenson was met with a warm summer breeze, and no pick up car.

“Hello... Yeah the pick-up car isn’t here... right... Okay bye” Seanagh planed her phone back in her clutch bag, Jenson didn’t even noticed that she had gotten her phone out. “Ten minutes” She said to her shoes, failing to hide a small shiver.

“Are you cold?” Jenson asked her as he undid the buttons on his grey suit jacket.

“No I’m fine” She lied, not even bothering to hide another shiver. Jenson sighed and rolled his eyes, beginning to take off his jacket. “Jenson don’t, I’ll be fine” She held up her hand in protest, Jenson raised his eyebrows and put his jacket back on.

“Only if you’re sure” Jenson replied as he carefully redid the buttons on his jacket, looking up again he found his eyes drifting in Seanagh’s direction, he noticed that her hair had been curled so it looked wavy rather than the organised curly mess that her hair usually resembled, not that Jenson minded. “You look really pretty tonight” He blurted out suddenly, looking down at his feet as he did so.

“Thanks” He could almost hear Seanagh’s smile in her voice, Jenson loved Seanagh’s smile...

“Thank goodness” Seanagh sighed as a black car pulled up right beside them, they both piled into the car and Seanagh told the driver the address of the garage where the cars were. The car pulled away as Jenson clicked his seatbelt. He looked over at Seanagh who was currently looking out of the window as the scenes of London went by. Her right hand was resting underneath her chin, and he dark brown hair flowed over her shoulders in perfect chocolate brown curls. _Jenson, you do not fancy her, she’s your team mate..._ The car stopped and Seanagh looked down at her feet, staring at her shoes. _You do not fancy her, she just happens to look beautiful... very beautiful. Oh for goodness sake Jenson snap out of it!!_

“What?” Seanagh had turned her attention from London’s traffic logged streets to Jenson, who must have been thinking out loud since Seanagh was looking at him looking very confused. “Are you alright, you said something?”

“Uh...” _Come on you can think up a good excuse_ “Yeah fine I was just thinking”

“Out loud?”

“Right!”

“Okay then...” Seanagh turned her attention back to her view outside her window. _I doubt that she’ll believe that one._

“Sorry _,_ I’m just a little jet lagged. Plus I get pretty restless when I’m stuck in traffic” Seanagh smiled, still looking at her feet.

“Are all F1 drivers like that? Because of they are then I should probably move out of London then” 

“I dunno, and how come you still live in London? The majority of the drivers live in Monaco” Jenson asked turning to look at Seanagh.

“But I’m not the majority of F1 drivers though, am I Jenson?”  Jenson just looked at her, not knowing what to say.

“No, definitely not” Jenson shook his head with a small laugh; Seanagh was nothing like the other drivers on the grid. They both sat in silence for a few moments, Jenson’s mind quickly went to this weekend in Monza, and Jenson felt so much pressure on his shoulders. “Do you think we’ll do well this weekend?” He asked suddenly.

“You shouldn’t dwell on it Jenson; it’s not good, for anyone” Jenson failed to notice that Seanagh’s hand was resting on his; he was too focused on her olive green eyes... “I mean I’ve had tonnes of bad press this season, but I try to never let it get it to me; I mean it just turns into a vicious cycle, first you don’t feel good about yourself, then you’re complaining all the time, that gets the people who work with you down, which eventually lets the entire team fell crap and then...”

“You’re just never the same after that” Jenson knew exactly what Seanagh meant, before Jenson had his first win with Honda in 2006, what Seanagh described was exactly how he felt, all the bad press took its toll, and his at-the-time fiancée... But Jenson’s not the same guy he was in 2006, or in 2009 for that matter. “It’s funny what a world championship does to you” Jenson grinned, not realising he said that thought out loud.

“Oh shush, I’ll get my championship one day, and _then_ we’ll see whose laughing!” Seanagh crossed her arms and pretended to go off in a huff, but it didn’t work because she started laughing two seconds later; Jenson started laughing too and before he knew it both him and Seanagh were in fits of laughter in the back of the car, having only moved a few places in the traffic jam. “Well... aren’t me and you such professionals” Seanagh giggled. Jenson sat up, smoothing out his tie.

“Yeah, professionals” Jenson sighed happily. “How long’s it been?”

“You’re the one wearing a watch”

“Oh right” Jenson pulled up the sleeve of his jacket and shirt, revealing his Tag Heuer watch. “It’s quarter to five, we’ll make it in plenty time don’t worry” Just as Jenson said that the car pulled up at the back of the garage, Jenson and Seanagh got out and walked in, hearing Seanagh gasp as she saw the cars. It had been organised that both McLaren drivers were going to arrive at the Rush premier in old McLaren F1 cars, Seanagh in Lewis’s 2008 car and Jenson in a 1970s McLaren.  Seanagh was already by her car, tying back her hair as she began to put on her helmet.

“Just think of this as practice for Sunday” She looked at him with a smile, carefully pulling her helmet down over her head. Jenson had to laugh as he got into his car, flipping his visor down as he drove out the garage. _If it’s a race you want Palmer, then it’s a race you’ll get._

*  *  *

In hindsight, Seanagh realised that trying to get out of an F1 car in eight inch heels wasn’t the best of ideas, she was glad when Jenson came to her rescue though, despite the fact how obvious it was that he was trying not to laugh. He placed his hands on her waist and lifted her out of the car, gently placing her feet on the ground. Once on solid ground Seanagh carefully took off her helmet, shaking her hair in an attempt to make it look how it was before. _Talk about helmet hair._ Jenson sat on the wheel of his seventies McLaren and Seanagh stood next to him, they both held their helmets under their arms, smiling at the paparazzi as they stood for pictures. There were calls from photographers coming from all over the place and Seanagh nearly jumped when Jenson stood up and snaked his free arm round her waist.

“I’d appreciate it if you didn’t scare me in front of the cameras” Seanagh said to him in a hushed whisper.

“Sorry, I’ll warn you next time” Jenson laughed quietly down Seanagh’s ear, making Goosebumps from all over her skin. _I wish I didn’t feel like this around him..._ but Seanagh couldn’t deny how much she loved it at the same time.


	27. Monza Weekend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I couldn't wait long to put up this chapter, I hope you guys all like it :)

_Thursday 5 th September – McLaren motor home, Monza_

The McLaren motor home was like a maze, so many corridors and rooms in one building. Seanagh had volunteered to take round the special 50th anniversary vintage uniforms that had been made for this weekend. 50 years, Seanagh felt honoured to be part of the team’s history, she was McLaren’s first ever female driver, that was something that made her feel very proud. She only had two sets of uniforms left to dish out, it had taken her roughly and hour and a half to give them out to everyone else, but Jenson and Mikey had seemed to have disappeared. It didn’t help that it was really hot outside and the air conditioning system seemed to have broken down. It looked like McLaren were getting all the luck this weekend. Seanagh was on the top floor sitting down on the floor with her back pressed against the cool metal wall, she had tried every single room and there was no sign of him. She had decided she would most likely kill Jenson when she saw him.

“Are you alright there?” Seanagh looked up and saw Jenson’s dad looking at her oddly.

“Yeah fine” She got up off the floor and brushed herself down. “I’m just looking for Jenson and Mikey to give them their special uniforms, you haven’t seen them have you?”

“Yeah, they went in there I think” He pointed over to a door that Seanagh hadn’t seen, and the only one she hadn’t checked.

“Great, thank you very much” Seanagh smiled brightly.

“Not a problem, and I know it’s a bit late but well done for Hungary. One of the best wins I’ve seen in years”

“W-wow, thank you” She stammered in reply. Given the race she had in Belgium that compliment meant the world to her.

“No problem, good luck for this weekend” He waved and walked off, Seanagh was just standing there almost forgetting what she was here for.

“Uniforms...” She muttered quietly to herself as she walked towards the silver door that had been pointed out to her. She knocked on it three times and didn’t have to wait long for a reply.

“I’ll be there in a minute” Mikey called from the other side. _Jenson better be there or I’ll..._ “Hey Seanagh, you can come in now” He opened the door and let her in a couple of minutes later. “What’s this then?” He gestured to her clothes, Seanagh was wearing her 50th anniversary uniform to try it on for size, and she was wearing a black skirt instead of the trousers that she normally wore. The uniform was a white shirt with a rocket red and grey stripe going down the left side with a red 50 stitched onto the front pocket. And the rocket red caps had been replaced by flat caps in the same colour with Vodafone on the front.

“It’s the special uniform for this weekend. I’ve got yours and Jenson’s here, providing I can find him that is...”

“Don’t tell me I have to wear a skirt” Mikey asked jokingly, reaching for a bottle of water from one of the tables.

“Nope, you’ve got trousers” Seanagh laughed. “You haven’t seen Jenson have you?”

“Yep he’s through there” He pointed to a door which must have led to another room. “He said he needed a deep muscle massage, he’s just getting dressed”

“Right, Martin wanted me to speak to him that’s all” Mikey nodded and took one of the flat caps and the clear packet that had his shirt in it.

“Hey Mikey have you seen my...”  Seanagh turned round and saw Jenson standing there; he walked in with his shirt on but with none of the buttons done up. Both Seanagh’s and Jenson’s eyes widened as they looked at each other in surprise at each other’s presence. “H-hey Seanagh”

*  *  *

If there was a time that Jenson wanted the ground to swallow him whole, it would have been now. His feet were glued to the floor and he was hastily doing up the buttons on his team shirt.

“Have you seen my cap Mikey?” Jenson asked, trying to hide the crimson in his cheeks.

“Yeah, it’s here” Mikey threw it over, Jenson forced it onto his head, the peak of the cap cast a shadow over his face completely hiding that fact he was red with embarrassment.

“What are you doing here?” Jenson asked Seanagh who looked up at him with her usual bright smile.

“Martin roped me in to dish out the vintage uniforms for Sunday” She replied as if he hadn’t walked in near shirtless

“Is that yours?”

“Yeah, I feel like a farmer wearing this” She took off the rocket red flat cap and lay it down on the table next to her. Jenson almost didn’t notice the fact that Mikey had left grinning. He was one of the few people that Jenson had confided in about his current problem. “And please don’t make a comment about the skirt; it’s all I’ve heard all freaking day” She slumped down onto the nearest chair.

“I wasn’t going to”

“Good” She threw her head back and sighed “I’ve got nothing else to do now, not many press people want to speak to me today so...”

“I don’t have anything to do either; we could go for lunch together” Jenson suggested, looking at his uniform that lay on the table that was right by Seanagh’s side.

“Jenson you’re an angel” She went up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek “I’ll meet you downstairs in ten” She smiled and walked over to the door, Jenson could feel the blood rushing to his cheeks again.

“Okay, and Seanagh...” She turned round standing in the open door way. “The uniform looks great on you”

“Thanks, I’ll see you in a few minutes” She left closing the door, Jenson sat down in the seat she was in moments ago and took off his cap with a sigh. _I can’t be falling for her, can I?_

*  *  *

Nico was walking back to the Mercedes motor home from the pit lane when it began to lightly drizzle. Walking even faster he ran into Lewis, who was talking with Jenson while sipping on a cup of coffee. Both drivers waved him over, inviting him into their conversation.

“Hey _guys”_ Nico smiled, waving at them politely.

“Hey Nico, are you heading over to the garage?” Lewis asked after Jenson left for the driver’s press conference with a beaming grin.

“I’ve just been, I was going to grab a cup of coffee and head back down” Lewis nodded before replying.

“Okay, I was gonna head straight down, but I’ll walk you to the motor home and we can head down together” Nico walked with Lewis back to the motor home where he got him another coffee, something which Lewis greatly appreciated. “Thanks man” He said before taking a swig “I’ve been running off caffeine all day, I’m shattered”

“It’s no problem” Nico took the lid off the disposable cup and gently blew on his cappuccino to try and cool it down, by this point the faint drizzle had stopped. Nico was enjoying having Lewis as a team mate; he had more in common with him than he did with Michael, and it helped that they had both been in karting together, so he didn’t have to build some form of friendship with him when it was already there. But given that Nico rarely walked with Lewis to the garage so both of them were stumped for things to say.

“So, you must be glad you got past Jenson in the championship”

“Yeah... you must be gutted about Hungary” Nico sipped on his coffee, the pair of them never usually discussed previous races, but a conversation was a conversation.

“I suppose” Lewis shrugged once they reached the Mercedes garage. “See you man” Lewis walked over to the pit wall to speak to Ross and Nico met his team of engineers to discuss the strategy for the weekend. _Perhaps I went too far with that one._

*  *  * 

_Saturday 7 th September – Qualifying, Italian Grand Prix_

Seanagh had done quite well in practice this morning, getting the fifth fastest time by a fraction of a second; she had done better than Jenson but not by much, and given the fact that this was the fiftieth anniversary weekend for McLaren, Seanagh had to do well. _Just do what you did this morning, you’ll be fine... I hope._ The conditions today were good; thirty degrees air temperature, forty two degrees track temperature. It was hot really hot, and that was before she stepped in the car. She got in and flipped up her visor so she could see the screens in front of her. Seanagh was getting restless now, like she always did before Q1. _Get me out there, I just want to drive._ It had gotten to fifteen minutes left of Q1 and she saw Ron Dennis wander over to her side of the garage. _Let me drive!_ Just over eleven minutes. _This is ridiculous._

“Okay Seanagh we’re going out now, I think we’ve got time for a good few flying laps, but take it easy on the tyres” Seanagh sighed with relief flipping down her visor as the car was lowered and she drove out of the garage and onto the circuit getting passed by what looked like a Sauber and a Force India. _If I can go through Eau Rouge, I can do that first chicane no problem._ She gritted her teeth and went through the chicane the way Jenson had directed her and by the end of her first lap she was twelfth. _But I can do way better than that._

“Guys, how much longer have I got?”

“Roughly seven and a half minutes, keep going on the lap you’re doing just now” She went round the last corner and crossed the line. “That time was good enough for sixth; we’ve six and a half minutes left, really good lap, point three off the pace” She was halfway through a slow lap when she got another message on the team radio. “We’re gonna box this lap for tyres, box for tyres” Seanagh drover her McLaren into the pit lane, forcefully pressing the pit lane speed limiter and she was wheeled back into the garage and went back out again with three and a half minutes left on a set of Medium tyres. _I can make it into Q2, I can and I will._ “That’s end of Q1, box this lap. You got fifth fastest time there well done”

*  *  *

“Okay Jenson good job there, you’ve got ninth place and Seanagh is in eighth. So box this lap” Ninth place hurt considering he had third fastest time in Q1, he had no idea what had happened to the car, it felt different, slower. _Not exactly worthy of a celebratory weekend._ Jenson drove the car into the garage and got out of the car and headed to the FIA office to get weighed. He took off his helmet and balaclava and unzipped his race suit and pulled his arms out of its sleeves running his left hand down his face in order to keep cool.

“Hey Jense” He turned round and saw Seanagh standing there with a beaming smile. “Nice job out there”

“You too, you out qualified me again” He said with a smirk, stepping onto the scales to get weighed. He was given the thumbs up and stood down, Seanagh taking his place. “Who got pole?” Jenson asked.

“Vettel”

“No surprise there” Jenson remarked and he and Seanagh headed back to the McLaren garage “What about the rest of the top ten?”

“Webber, Hulkenberg, Massa, Alonso, Rosberg, Ricciardo, me, you and Vergne” She recited back to him as both Nico’s walked past them with beaming smiles.

“Hulkenberg, in third?!” Jenson looked at his team mate confused.

“Yep, don’t worry I think everyone’s surprised. Even Sauber” She chuckled pulling the hair bobble out of her hair allowing it to fall in messy curls down her back. “What are you staring at?”

“Nothing” He lied, glancing down at his feet.

“Well I think me and you are gonna be stuck here a while, Martin wants us to do lots of promo stuff apparently. After we’ve done press of course”

“Of course” Jenson scratched the back of his neck. He and Seanagh were met by Martin, hands on hips speaking to Ron Dennis. Both drivers tensed up and moved slightly closer together.

“Hey guys, I’ll take those” Martin outstretched his hands to take both driver’s helmets, they hesitantly handed them over. Ron handed them their team caps. “You guys go off and do some press, meet me back here when you’re done” Jenson led Seanagh away with him as her feet seemed to be glued to the tarmac. Jenson looked over his shoulder and saw Ron and Martin talking, glancing over their shoulders briefly meeting Jenson’s gaze. _Contracts, they’re speaking about contracts for next year._

*  *  *

It had just gone ten when Nico got back to the hotel. He was tired, exasperated and every other synonym that meant that he was tired. He was one of the last drivers back from the circuit, and he really wanted another coffee, but that would mean not sleeping, so just going to sleep after a shower sounded like the best idea in the world.

“Seb I don’t care, I don’t want to do this. And you can’t make me!” The sound of Seanagh’s raised voice from one of the cupboards caught Nico’s attention.

“But you don’t understand, I really, really like you. I want this” Nico pressed his ear against the door and heard Seb in a pleading reply.

“This isn’t Switzerland Seb”

“I know” He pleaded again.

“Well I... I need to make up my mind about some things”

“Is Jenson one of those things?” Sebastian retorted in an angry tone. There was a long pause and Nico drew away from the door as he heard footsteps approach it, and Seanagh stepped out a few moments later.

“N-Nico! I uh... I can-” She looking at Nico both in surprise and fear.

“Yes I heard, and I won’t say anything”

“Thank you” She sighed “Look I need to talk to you, about... uh what you just heard”

“Sure... but can we make it quick, I need some rest” Nico led the way to his room and Seanagh collapsed onto the sofa once they were there, her head was buried in her hands.

“Oh my god... what the hell is wrong with me” She sighed before telling him everything about Switzerland, the bet, and dinner... and the kisses. “But I want to go out with him but I... I don’t know about Jenson... I feel like I’m falling in love with him” Nico’s jaw dropped, Jenson had came to see him yesterday and he had confessed the exact same thing. _Oh. My. God._ “I’m so confused, I just don’t know what to do” Seanagh stood up and began to pace up and down the room, her hands knotted in her hair.

“Jenson...” Nico murmured. “Jenson!” Nico stood up, Seanagh looked at him confused.

“What about him, are you saying that I...”

“Just go find him... tell him what you just said to me” Nico grinned, pushing Seanagh towards the door.

“What, about Seb?”

“No the last bit, that’s the most important bit”

“But I... I don’t know if I can, I mean he... we...” A knock on the door silenced her.

“Nico are you there?! I can’t find Seanagh” Her eyes widened at Jenson’s voice. Nico grinned as he opened the door.

“She’s right here” Nico opened the door and Jenson stepped inside, tapping his fingers against his legs.

“Hey I uh... do you mind if I speak to you for a minute” He smiled at her; it was his wide bright charming smile. She nodded returning the smile. _If only Raven and me were like this..._

 *  *  *

_Sunday 8th September – Italian Grand Prix_

Seanagh had done her hair into the same plait she had worn on Thursday and fixed the rocket red flat cap on her head, eyeing her reflection in the mirror from her head to her black ballet flats. She titled her head to the side before she picked up her keycard from the table and headed out the door before she ended up doing something silly with her uniform.

“Hey Seanagh!” She turned round and saw Jenson casually jogging towards her. “Hey” He smiled as the lift doors opened. “I know what you meant about the farmer comment” Seanagh laughed at Jenson’s comment, she was somewhat nervous for today, and Jenson helped get rid of her pre-race nerves – he always did.

“Yep. Maybe Martin’s surprise is that we’re doing the race in tractors!” They both looked at each other and burst out laughing, that always seemed to happen when they were alone in a lift together. “Well, the vintage uniform doesn’t look too bad on you Jense” Seanagh remarked as they walked out of the lift.

“Same to you” he replied

“You told me that on Thursday...”

“Hey Jenson!” _No, no, no, no, no! Not him, anyone but him..._

“Hey Seb!” Jenson greeted the German in a friendly hug.

“Hello Seanagh” He smiled at her as if their conversation yesterday didn’t even happen. “Nice uniforms, are they the vintage ones?” She nodded silently, her cheeks turning the same colour as her hat. “Oh well, see you at the race” Seb went off with his physio Heikki and PA Britta. _I really hope I don’t see him again today._ Of course that would be difficult considering he was a fellow driver.

*  *  *

Jenson grinned as he walked out in front of the McLaren motor home for the official team photographs. There was a very gentle breeze which only slightly cooled the warm air. _Jeez it’s hot..._ Jenson approached the large group and tried to edge his way into the middle next to Martin.

“Okay guys, I want you all to wave your hats in the air for me please!” The photographer instructed as Jenson proceeded to do as he was told, putting on a beaming smile for the camera. _Ninth place, how can I redeem myself after ninth place in qualifying?_ “Okay guys, thanks very much. Mr Whitmarsh, my I have a word?” Martin walked forward leaving Jenson alone as everyone else scattered.

“You okay there JB? You look like you’re in dreamland” Jenson looked down and saw Seanagh looking at him concerned.

“Yeah, yeah I’m fine” He smiled at her reassuringly before turning round and heading back into the motor home, once half way there he paused and turned round. “Hey Seanagh!” She looked at him and smiled the smile that made Jenson go weak at the knees “Good luck for today”

“You too” She grinned. _Don’t focus on her, focus on the race._

*  *  *

“Congratulations Seb you’ve won the Italian Grand Prix!” Christian spoke over the team radio as Seb cheered in reply. His second win in a row and his sixth win of the season so far.

“Thank you boys that was a tough one going round the first corner” Seb laughed nervously. _If this doesn’t make Seanagh want me then I don’t know what will._ Seb waved to the crowd as he did his victory lap, he was being cheered at, but not as much as he usually would, probably because he wasn’t in a red car. Pulling the car into parc ferme he had to stop for a moment and think; _second race in a row, sixth of the season._ He was really on his way to winning the championship.

*  *  *

The hotel bar, Seb had been there for at least three hours, looking out for a certain someone. And that certain someone walked in right on cue in a white dress that hugged her figure perfectly. Seb downed the remainder of his beer and walked towards her. _What have I got to lose?_

“Hello sweetheart” He grinned at her, he was met with a cold glare.

“Good evening Sebastian” She tried to push past him, Seb was having none of it.

“Oh come on Seanagh, I only want to buy you a drink” He placed his hands on her waist in an attempt to convince her to stay, she wasn’t complying.

“Let me past Seb” He spun her round and led her to the bar. “One drink, that’s all I want”

“Fine” She sighed, taking the free seat next to him. “But that’s it, one drink then I’m off” She looked at him disgruntled.

“What’s wrong, sad about the race?”

“Oh shut up” She grabbed her cocktail from the bartender and began to drink it quickly, before too long it was finished. “There, now if you’ll excuse me...” She got up off the seat and began to walk away, Seb – filled with panic – chased after her, spinning her round when he caught up with her and kissed her on the lips. Seanagh pulled away first, and before Seb knew it, she was gone again and his left cheek stung like mad. _Looks like I have to get her another way._


	28. A Kiss, An Argument and A Question

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter is a little longer than others (hope you all don't mind that) as regards to the next update it's probably not going to be until Wednesday/Thursday (sorry about that, school stuff)
> 
> Anyway I hope you all enjoy this chapter :)

_Wednesday 19 th September – Changi International Airport, Singapore_

The heat in Singapore was stifling, and it matched the tension on the plane perfectly. Seanagh knew that it would be trouble having all twenty two drivers on the same flight, given all the talk of diver contracts (and since Kimi had just been announced as Ferrari’s second driver for next season, leaving Felipe Massa without a seat) tensions between all twenty two of them were high, very high. Seanagh wheeled her case through the airport terminal and walked silently with Jenson towards the car that would be waiting for them to take them to the drivers’ hotel, again all of the drivers would be there. It was bound to end up in disaster, given the very negative feeling on the plane; Seb was constantly glaring at Jenson, and Nico glaring at Kimi every time he was with Raven. Another reason why Seanagh spent the majority of the flight with Raven.

“Finally away from Vettel” Jenson sighed ruffling his hair as he rested his cap on his leg.

“You’re not the only one” Seanagh muttered, looking down at the floor.

“Been bother you as well has he?” Jenson asked. Seanagh looked up at him with an ice cold glare. “Sorry... shouldn’t have asked” Seanagh rolled her eyes and looked out the window at the bright night lights of Singapore.

“Well I don’t know about you, but I’m going straight to bed when I get into the hotel” Seanagh rested her head against the window, it was eleven o’clock at night local time, and Seanagh felt drained after the long flight.

“Hate to break it to you but you’ll have to stay up late” Jenson sighed.

“Why?”

“Singapore is a night race, so the teams work on European time when we’re here to compensate for that, we go to bed at five in the morning and get up at one in the afternoon” Jenson explained, Seanagh let out a small whine as she buried her head in her hands.

“And you didn’t think of telling me before”

“Sorry... I thought you already knew” Jenson looked at her sympathetically as Seanagh’s phone began to buzz.

‘ _You never thought to tell me that the teams work on EU time over here!! I’m not getting to bed until 5!’_ Seanagh read Raven’s text and sighed, beginning to type out a reply.

_‘Sorry, I only just found out as well’_

_‘It’s okay, don’t worry about it’_ Seanagh read Raven’s reply and put her phone in her handbag, since the back skirt she was wearing had no pockets.  The car pulled to a stop as Seanagh and Jenson proceeded to get their stuff out the car. Jenson did what he usually would, hauling both his and Seanagh’s cases out of the back of the car. Walking into the hotel lobby Seanagh made a bee line for the reception desk, as did so many others. In her flurry Seanagh almost ran into a tall blond man, nearly knocking them both over.

“Who... sorry Seanagh” Seanagh looked up and saw Max Chilton smiling politely down at her.

“Sorry Max, my fault really” She smiled at the fellow Brit. After ten minutes of waiting Seanagh had been given the key to her hotel room and was walking along the corridor looking for room number 719. When she finally found it she hurried in, dumped her bags at the door and collapsed onto the large double bed. Twenty two drivers all in the same hotel, it was bound to end in disaster.

*  *  *

_Thursday 19 th September – Singapore Grand Prix Drivers Press Conference_

Another grand prix, another press conference... Nico’s thoughts were once again filled with the fact that he hated them, and it had to be made worse by the fact that he was sat next to Kimi. _Just one more question, then I can leave and get as far away from him as I can._ Nico tapped his foot on the ground as he answered the last question, and just after that the six drivers were allowed to leave. Valtteri, Kimi, Adrian and the other Nico left as quickly as they could, but Seanagh waited for Nico to walk him to the team buildings since the McLaren and Mercedes team buildings were right next to each other. Everything was fine until they had “accidentally” run into Kimi, a standoff occurring between the German and the Finn. Mid-way through the argument Raven – who was at the sidelines – kissed Kimi causing Nico to run off in the opposite direction, thankfully running into Jenson, Seanagh wasn’t too far behind, so the McLaren drivers took Nico to the hospitality area for tea, before taking him to one of the meeting rooms in the main building at the circuit.

“I can't stand the way he touches her and kisses her! I want to do that! I want her with me!” Nico had been ranting for the past ten minutes; he could see that Seanagh and Jenson were starting to get a little bored.

“Well... try and impress her then!” Jenson looked over at him, throwing his empty paper cup into the bin, missing by a few centimetres.

“Yeah do something really nice and spontaneous... Like flowers! I like flowers, and I know for a fact that Raven does as well” Both Jenson’s and Nico’s attentions were focused on Seanagh as she spoke.

“She does?”  Seanagh nodded “Well... I don’t know I mean, Raven’s in love with Kimi, and I don’t want to force them to break up”

“Well either way...” Seanagh muttered something under her breath as Kimi and Raven barged in. Raven smiled brightly at the three drivers, Nico dived into the bathroom that was thankfully only a few strides away, he couldn’t bear to be in the same room as Kimi. Plus, it felt like something was about to kick off...

 *  *  *

“What did I do?” Raven asked innocently as she sat down opposite Seanagh. Seanagh knew, but she didn’t want to say – but she’d had enough of the whole Nico-Raven-Kimi drama.

“What didn’t you do” Seanagh rolled her eyes, causing Kimi to march over to her, a look of anger in his eyes.

“Hey!” He shouted at her a little louder than needed. “Don’t you dare speak to her like that... or you’ll answer to me” Kimi gritted his teeth as he cracked his knuckles, Seanagh stood up to defend herself but Jenson got there first.

“Threaten her again and _you’ll_ have to answer to _me_ ” Jenson looked down on Kimi – since he was taller – Seanagh was flattered at the fact that Jenson was protecting her, but scared because she knew what Kimi was like when he was pissed off.

“Oh yeah, why are you involved Button?” Kimi pushed Jenson back a few steps “Stay out of this if you know what’s good for you” Jenson glared at Kimi and stepped forward with his fists clenched.

“I’ve been involved from the start; just lay off my team mate... if you know what’s good for you” Jenson spoke through gritted teeth. Raven stood up, attempting to pull Kimi away.

“Kimi, let’s go...” Kimi shook her off, gently pushing her away.

“No! What’s your problem Button? Just because you can’t fuck your ‘team mate’ on a daily basis doesn’t give you the right to defend her. _She_ yelled at _my_ girlfriend” Seanagh stood with her feet glued to the floor watching the argument unfold in front of her. _Please just stop now before it gets any worse, just stop..._

“Who’s good enough for _you?_ Huh, well so is anyone I guess...” Jenson’s eyes remained locked with Kimi’s.

“Jenson!” Seanagh raised her voice at him, moving in to pull him away before Kimi’s fist collided with Jenson’s nose, the force of the punch bringing Jenson to the ground.

“Kimi!” Raven ran out of the room crying. Kimi looked as if he was about to throw in another punch at Jenson before Seanagh stood between them.

“What the hell do you think you’re playing at Kimi?!”

“Seanagh... just leave it” Jenson groaned from the floor. _No!_ _Nobody, on any account does that to him._ The thought ran through her head as she gritted her teeth.

“Kimi... I have had just about enough of you. You need to get you’re fucking act together alright. Jenson’s never done anything to you so-”

“You heard him” Kimi was trying to make Jenson look like the bad guy; Seanagh knew that wasn’t the case.

“That is no way to treat someone; he’s human just like everyone else. And if you ever hurt Jenson again... or Raven for the matter then you will have me to deal with. So just leave the pair of them alone” Jenson stood up, looking at Seanagh in complete shock. “And even then, he’s more of a man than you’ll ever be” Kimi glared at her as Raven reappeared from nowhere.

“Will all of you get a grip?! Seanagh I don’t care if Kimi hit Jenson... he called me a slut, just like everyone else has been. I can’t believe you’d choose him over me...” Raven looked at Seanagh with tears flooding down her cheeks as she ran out of the room sobbing, a look of pure regret on Seanagh’s face. Kimi went to follow Raven but stopped at the door, looking at both McLaren drivers.

“You had to have the last word Palmer, now look what you’ve done... thanks a lot” He walked out as Nico also reappeared from thin air, a wide grin on his face. _At least Nico wasn’t involved..._

“What did you find in there? Class A drugs?” Jenson exclaimed, Nico looked at both Brits bemused. _He must have heard the whole thing._ “Agh, fucking Finns!” Seanagh looked over her shoulder to see red blood coming out of Jenson’s nose. Seanagh sighed, taking full responsibility for what happened.

“Let me get that...” Nico was forgotten, until he spoke again.

“Um do you need anything?”

“Yeah, a bowl with cold water, paper towels and tissues... and privacy” Nico nodded, helping Seanagh find what she needed before leaving, closing the door behind him.

“I’ve got blood on my shirt” Jenson sighed, holding his nose as if it were valuable China. Seanagh was still in the bathroom filling up the bowl she found with water.

“Take it off; you don’t want to gat anymore on it. Martin will want to know how it got there. I should be able to get it out” Seanagh called through to the other room, she heard the quiet movement of fabric as she assumed that Jenson would now be in the next room shirtless. _Don’t stare; whatever you do don’t look he’s probably not that nice without his shirt anyway... wow._ Jenson was leaning against the table with his back to her; Seanagh looked at him, secretly admiring the tattoos on his back. _Okay, I was wrong._ Seanagh watched as the muscles in his back moved under his skin as he breathed. Seeing Jenson so exposed in this way made her ten times more attracted to him than she was five minutes ago. _Jenson... it’s always been Jenson._ Seanagh managed to tear her eyes away from Jenson as she sat the bowl of water by his shirt – using the paper towels to dab at the blood stain on his collar.

“I hope you’re not wanting me to take anything else off... otherwise I might have to charge” Seanagh looked up as Jenson stood over her, a smirk playing on his lips. All Seanagh could do was force out a nervous laugh, trying to keep her eyes off him.

“I shouldn’t think so” Was what she said after the laugh, looking into the deep ocean blue eyes of her team mate. “Has the bleeding stopped?” She asked; Jenson touched his nose with his hand.

“Yeah, I think so” He leaned against the table, his hands deep in his pockets. Lightly dampening a paper towel she began to wipe the drying blood of Jenson’s face, he didn’t protest saying that he could look after himself – which was what he normally did – he just sat and was quiet, as if he wanted to be taken care of. By this point Seanagh had completely forgotten about Seb, right now it was just her and Jenson.

“You shouldn’t have stood up to Kimi like that Jense” Seanagh handed him a few extra tissues in case he needed them.

“I don’t care; I couldn’t let him get away with what he said about you” He placed his right hand on Seanagh’s waist, making her look into his eyes.

“It’s okay, I can fight my own battles” Seanagh smiled reassuringly, leaning in closer to Jenson.

“Good luck with Kimi then” Jenson smirked, placing his other hand on the small of Seanagh’s back. Both Seanagh and Jenson knew what was happening – it was inevitable with all of the tension still lurking in the air, the basic attraction they had for each other had been there since they had first laid eyes on each other for the first time back in January, all it needed was a little push... or in this case a punch. They both leaned in closer and closer, until their lips were millimetres away from each other. Seanagh noticed everything about Jenson then, the freckles on his face, the blueness of his eyes – and the small wrinkles at the corners of both of them – the stray areas of stubble that Jenson had missed while shaving earlier on in the day. Seanagh sighed and placed her hand in the crook of Jenson neck, and burying the other in his sandy blond hair. Everything in that moment was perfect until there was a knock on the door, Seb on the other side asking if everything was okay. In a quick flurry Jenson packed everything away and he thankfully put his shirt back on. Opening the door Seanagh and Jenson both sighed, the kiss that had never happened, but they both desperately wanted still lingering on their lips.

*  *  *

Nico lay in bed, the moment between him and Raven that had happened hours ago still playing on his mind, it was perfect... no better than perfect, way better than perfect. Part way through the argument that was happening in the next room, Raven had ran into the bathroom that Nico was in, not expecting to see him there. The fact that she was crying her eyes out didn’t help. Raven had taken one look at Nico and ran towards him, wrapping her arms round him in a needing hug. She had told Nico what had happened, Jenson had a go at Kimi and Kimi had punched Jenson knocking him to the floor. She had sobbed, saying how she had never been so scared before in her life. Nico had tried to comfort her, telling her that everything would be alright, that things would sort themselves out eventually. And then the unexpected happened. Raven cut Nico off mid sentence in the most perfect kiss that he could have ever imagined. She had ran out straight after that, but Nico couldn’t deny what had happened between them, and how perfect it really was.

*  *  *

_Friday 20 th September – Drivers Hotel, Singapore_

Raven was relieved when she had finally managed to get away from Kimi, she had been trying to for the whole day, and it was only when he had fallen asleep early that she had sneaked out looking for Nico. She wanted to ask Seanagh where he was but they had fallen out after the incident yesterday, in addition to that Jenson wasn’t speaking to her and Kimi was just avoiding everyone in general, apart from Seb, Heikki and a few people from Lotus. Raven wandered around on the seventh floor of the hotel, she hadn’t seen Nico on any of the other floors and she had heard that a few people from Mercedes were on this floor, maybe Nico was too. One of the doors in front of Raven opened and she stopped in her tracks. Raven met Seanagh’s gaze and but her lip nervously, looking at her friend cautiously in case they had a repeat of their shouting match they had this morning.

“Good evening Raven” She said coldly.

“Good uh...” Raven cleared her throat “Good evening Seanagh”

“Looking for anyone in particular? Or just wondering around aimlessly?” She asked with a very small smile.

“Looking for someone, have you seen Nico?” Raven asked hopefully, nervously wringing her hands together.

“I haven’t seen him since free practice, sorry” Seanagh shrugged, looking at Raven sympathetically. “But if I see him I’ll tell him that you’re looking for him” She began to walk past Raven, who stopped her by lightly grabbing onto her arm.

“I’m sorry about this morning, and last night. We may not have to be friends again but at least let me offer a truce” Seanagh looked as if she was contemplating the offer.

“I hate to be rude but... I need to go, team stuff” She sighed, running her hand through her hair. “Like I said, if I see Nico I’ll tell him you’re looking for him” Seanagh turned away again, walking backwards so she was still facing Raven.

“Thanks Seanagh” Raven smiled at her, Seanagh returned the smile.

“See you later Rae” Things may still have been a little raw between them but they had a history of making up quickly after a fight. Still Raven had to find Nico right now, that was much more important.

*  *  *

Seanagh was sat at the hotel bar, she was meant to be meeting Jenson, although he hadn’t been very clear in the text. _‘Meet me in the hotel bar as soon as you can, it’s important’._ That was all it said, Jenson was again showing his habit of making no sense in text messages. Last night had been the only thing on Seanagh’s mind; it felt good in an odd way, but it also felt weird, really, _really_ weird. She felt someone tap on her shoulder and she turned round and met the ocean blue eyes of hear team mate. _He has got the nicest eyes in the world._

“Hey” Jenson smiled at her awkwardly, resting his hand on the small of her back.

“Hey” She nervously rubbed the back of her neck as Jenson sat next to her. “So, you said you wanted to see me and you said it was important. What is it?”

“Uh...” Jenson ruffled his hair, like he always did when he was nervous. “It’s about... what happened last night...” Jenson trailed off looking at the surface of the bar blankly. “Can I get you a drink?”

*  *  *

Raven hadn’t heard from Seanagh, meaning that she hadn’t seen Nico, it was fast approaching midnight and Raven was reaching the end of her tether, if she didn’t find Nico now then she’d have no chance finding him over the rest of the grand prix weekend.

“Raven?” She heard a voice, his voice, the voice that she had been dying to hear all day. _Nico..._ But then Raven remembered Kimi, and that he’d do what he did to Jenson yesterday if he knew Nico was with Raven right now. Life was just so complicated right now. Raven turned round, seeing the blond German standing only a few feet away, he smiled at her brightly and Raven’s stomach churned with nerves.

“Hello Nico” She looked at him with a small smile, he looked nothing less than perfect.

“How are you?” He approached her slowly, by the time Raven was able to reply Nico was standing right in front of her.

“Complicated. You?”

“Never been better” Nico grinned.

“Look I need to talk to you in private, about... last night” Raven whispered, Nico slyly placed his hand on her waist.

“Okay, my room is just down the hall” He smirked.

“Okay, but we have to make it quick. If Kimi wakes up it won’t take long for him to put two and two together” Raven looked down at her feet; she had to explain herself, things had to be sorted out. It was the proper thing to do. Nico led Raven to his hotel room and she sat down on the sofa and Nico was stood by the balcony drumming his fingers against the wall.

“So, what do you have to say?” Raven knew that what she was going to say may crush Nico to pieces, but honesty was best, Seanagh had taught her that.

“Look, last night... if you want me to be honest I was distraught, scared, I just needed someone to be there for me. And that was the only reason I kissed you” Raven stood up, heading towards the door “And I’m sorry if I led you on or anything but...” Nico strode towards her, taking Raven in his arms as he kissed her, Raven was powerless to do anything so she let Nico kiss her and this would be the only time that Raven would allow it. And the second Raven would walk out of Nico’s hotel room she would be so devoted to Kimi, so completely in love with him that Nico would just have to accept it and move on. And that was exactly what she did.

*  *  *

_Saturday 21 st September – Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore_

The weather was still ridiculously hot and humid; it was twenty seven degrees the last time Seanagh had checked. She was walking back through the pit lane after a brief visit to the paddock to change into her team uniform from her race overalls. Qualifying had been awful for Seanagh; she had qualified fourteenth while Jenson was up in eighth, and Seb was on pole of course, no surprise there. Seanagh knew that the car had taken a big step back in performance since summer break; her and Jenson were winning races before, now they were left in the dust of their fellow competitors.

“Hey Seanagh” She spun round on her heel and saw Adrian Sutil waving her over, he was standing with someone else, she look familiar but Seanagh couldn’t make out who she was.

“Hey Adrian” She smiled at both of them brightly.

“I’m sorry to bother you but my girlfriend would like a picture” The blond woman smiled at Seanagh politely, how could she say no to a friend.

“Yeah sure, it’s no problem”

“Thank you, I’m Jennifer by the way” She introduced herself as Adrian took the picture.

“Yeah, I’ve seen around at loads of races, it’s nice to be able to meet you in person” Adrian gave both girls the thumb up as he put his phone back in his pocket. Adrian and Jennifer both thanked Seanagh and she was on her way back to the McLaren garage when she almost forgot to ask Adrian something. “Oh Adrian, you haven’t seen Jenson at all have you? I need to speak to him about something, it’s important”

“I think he’s in the McLaren garage, but be careful there’s a camera crew from Sky there”

“Cheers, good luck for tomorrow” Seanagh resumed making her way down the pit lane, walking past the Sauber and Mercedes garages. Nico had stopped Seanagh briefly when she had passed his side of the garage, asking if she had seen Raven, Seanagh said no and kept on walking, passing Raven and Kimi as she went past the Lotus garage. Raven had been acting odd ever since the incident on Thursday, all she could speak about was how happy she was with Kimi, and what a great guy he was, she didn’t even mention the fact that she had won the F3 championship until someone mentioned it to Seanagh in an interview, since the F3 season was over Raven would be at every remaining race weekend for the rest of the season, starting with this week in Singapore. Seanagh had taken Adrian’s warning and snuck into her side of the McLaren garage as Ted Kravitz from Sky Sports F1 was speaking to Sam Michael in front of Jenson’s garage.

“Hey, Seanagh” She heard a loud whisper behind her, turned out it was Jenson hiding by the computers in the middle of the garage.

“Jenson what the hell are you doing?”

“We need to talk, in private” He replied in the same loud whisper. Seanagh rolled her eyes and grabbed Jenson’s hand and led him out of the garage, making sure the camera crew saw nothing. “Where are we going?” Jenson asked when Seanagh eventually let go of his hand.

“Team building, we won’t get disturbed in the drivers rooms will we?” Seanagh asked, scanning her access all areas pass at the paddock entrance.

“No I don’t think we will” Jenson replied stuffing his hands in his pockets. It took them ten minutes before they were in the cool air conditioned building, since the motor homes weren’t there as they were only for the European races. Upon entering Jenson and Seanagh grabbed a cold bottle of water from the nearest fridge before heading upstairs to the drivers rooms. The drivers rooms was really just one large room with a make shift wall down the middle, they both went to Jenson’s side fighting between themselves as to who got to lie on the sofa, Jenson won after attacking Seanagh with pillows. “So...” Jenson started. “We really need to talk you know, about what happened on Thursday”

“Yeah” Seanagh replied “And don’t bother distracting me with non-alcoholic cocktails like you did last night, we really need to talk about what happened this time” Seanagh sat up from her spot on the floor and looked up at Jenson who was lying on the small black sofa with one leg hanging off the side, he sat up eventually, running his hands through his hair.

“So what happened then?” Jenson asked, looking his team mate in the eyes. “Between us I mean”

“Right, us...” Seanagh trailed off looking at the floor. _Us..._ The temptation was so hard to ignore. “Well I think it was just a...” She could barely find the words to describe it. The only thing that Seanagh could think about was how desperately she wanted to have kissed Jenson then; it would have been so easy if Seb hadn’t gotten in the way. She got up off the floor and walked over to the wall, facing it as she spoke. “I guess it was the aftermath of what happened really, I mean you defending me and getting punched in the face as a result, it was just a...”

“You’re speaking to a wall you know that” Jenson chuckled, walking over and leaning against the wall Seanagh was facing, running his hand across her arm. “So, will this be like Hungary in which we never mention it again?”

“If we keep doing that it’s not going to turn out well for either of us” Jenson looked at Seanagh confused at her statement. “I mean yeah we speak about it now, sweep it under the rug and never mention it but it might... come up again and me and you are left in a situation in which neither of us know how to deal with” Seanagh crossed her arms across her chest and looked directly into Jenson’s eyes.

“How do we deal with it then?” Jenson asked leaving Seanagh both breathless and confused.

“Dinner?”


	29. Dinner and an After Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, as promised here is the next chapter, sorry about lack of updates this week, I've had prelims and they needed to take priority for a little while, hopefully we should be back to the regular flow of updates, hope you all enjoy the chapter :)

Dinner. That one word had been circling Jenson’s head for the past hour. _Dinner, with Seanagh, like an actual date! Oh my god I’m going on a date with her!_ Panicked, Jenson rummaged his pockets to find his phone, and he called Nico when he eventually found it.

“Nico, hey. Can you come to my hotel room?” He paused to look at his watch. “Now, it’s an emergency”

“What kind of emergency?” Nico asked, he sounded half asleep, it was only eight o’clock.

“I’ll explain it to you when you get here, it’s not something I’d like to say over the phone. Plus I need a calming influence right now” Jenson sighed sitting on the small glass coffee table.

“I’ll be right there” Nico’s tone changed instantly and he hung up the phone, Jenson threw his on the sofa and ran his hands across his face. After a few moments his worried expression was replaced with a wide grin. _I’m going on a date with her._

*  *  *

“I mean I don’t even know how it happened, we were just standing there and I just said it and he looked at me, grinned like a school boy and actually said yes!” Seanagh sat on the bed next to Raven in her hotel room “And I thought we were just going to eat room service in his hotel room, and he suggest the hotel restaurant, and knowing him he’ll be wearing a flashy suit and I don’t have anything to wear” She sighed, burying her head into the nearest pillow. Raven mimicked Seanagh’s sigh and stood up, causing Seanagh to do the same. “Rae, what are you doing?” Raven ignored her and walked over to the dressing table, where a flat medium sized silver box was concealed. “What’s that?”

“I’ve been meaning to give you this for a while, it’s a little first F1 win present, even though it was a while ago I think you could use it now” Raven smiled sweetly at her and Seanagh lay the box by her side, lifting the lid carefully.

“Oh my...” Seanagh gasped; in the box was the most beautiful dress Seanagh had ever seen. She lifted it out carefully, with the fabric of the never ending dress gracefully falling to the floor. It was red, not the McLaren rocket red, but more of a pillar box red, with a long slit running up the dress that looked as if it would go way past Seanagh’s knee. “It’s beautiful, but Raven-”

“I’m sorry for yesterday, but you gave me that dress in Australia, and I owe you one” Raven shrugged her shoulders with a weak smile. “How long have you got?”

“Forty-five minutes” Seanagh looked tentatively at her watch.

“You have a shower, I’ll find shoes and stuff” Seanagh hugged Raven, handing over the dress.

“You’re the best” She smiled at her, running into the bathroom.

*  *  *

Just over half an hour later Seanagh was sitting in front of her dressing room table, the last lock of her hair being curled by Raven.

“There you go, are you happy with the make-up, it’s not usually what you have” Seanagh looked in the mirror and almost didn’t recognise herself, bright red lips and her green eyes surrounded by smoky grey and black eye shadow, with very little blush on her cheeks, her hair was in flawless curls that flowed over her shoulders and down her back.

“Yeah... it’s perfect, thanks Raven” Seanagh smiled as she stood up.

“No problem, at least I let you do your nails yourself” Seanagh extended her left hand and admired her handy work, all of her nails were the same red as her dress apart from the ring finger, which was painted black with a couple of coats of silver glitter.

“I swear Raven, you’re a genius with last minute outfits. I look amazing thanks to you” Seanagh twirled round in her dress, looking at her reflection in the full length mirror.

“Well, it’s Jenson. You needed to look your best”

“Yeah...” Seanagh looked at the back of her dress; it was partially backless apart from two bits of fabric going up to her left shoulder. “Are you sure the back isn’t too revealing”

“No, it looks great” Raven looked at her watch “And you had better be going, it’s almost quarter to” Seanagh slipped her black peep toe heels and slid a platinum and diamond ring onto her left index finger. “And I’m walking you there in case you run off” Raven led Seanagh to the door, handing her a black clutch bag with silver metal detailing. Seanagh rolled her eyes and laughed nervously, picked up her keycard as Raven led her out of her room, down the corridor and into the lift at the end of the hall.

“Is it normal to be nervous? I mean I’ve done scarier things... I think” Seanagh asked Raven for reassurance, her stomach was twisting with nerves.

“Well yeah, you’ve liked Jenson for ages and you’re finally going on a date with him, it’s understandable” Raven explained as the lift doors opened, they had reached the ground floor, and Seanagh could see Jenson from the other side of the lobby.

“Raven I don’t think I can do this, and why is Nico there?” Seanagh stopped walking and hid behind a large pot plant that concealed her perfectly.

“Yes you can, and Nico will be there the same reason as I am, can’t have you both running off, come on” Raven pulled Seanagh out from behind the plant and led her to where Jenson was standing. He was wearing a suit as Seanagh had expected, black with a crisp white shirt and a long black tie, he looked so handsome so...

“Hey” Jenson smiled his usual perfect charming smile.

“Hey” Seanagh smiled back and Nico and Raven both disappeared from view.

“You look beautiful” Jenson leaned down and kissed Seanagh’s cheek; _why do you have to be so charming Jenson, why?!_

“Thanks, you look very... handsome” Seanagh stammered, she could feel her palms beginning to sweat. Jenson laughed nervously, placing his hands in his pockets.

“We should be going in” He moved to her side and held out his arm “Shall we?” Seanagh smiled, putting her arm through Jenson’s as they walked into the restaurant; Seanagh didn’t have to worry about feeling over dressed as everyone else in the restaurant was dressed in black tie. “Don’t worry you’re just as nervous as I am” Jenson smiled as he sat down opposite her, a nearby waiter walked over and lit the candle in the middle of the table. It was all very romantic with a string quartet playing quietly in the background. After a few minutes Seanagh and Jenson began talking and the awkwardness that was lurking over the table floated away, something about the date just felt right, and Seanagh couldn’t place a single finger on what it was, unable to realise it was the man opposite her that she was unknowingly falling in love with.

*  *  *

By eleven o’clock Jenson had finished his desert (he had decided to splurge on a slice of red velvet cake a decision which he later chose to regret) and the night had gone much better than Jenson had first thought it would have went. After the initial nerves passed the whole thing just felt so natural, Jenson felt he had gotten to know Seanagh even better than he thought he did, he’d found out all of her little quirks all the things that made her smile, that in turn Jenson hadn’t stopped smiling all night. A waiter had came by and cleared away both their plates and Jenson asked for the bill to be put on his tab, Seanagh protested and she only stopped when Jenson gave in and let her pay for her half of the meal. Jenson and Seanagh both decided to leave the restaurant and they walked out holding hands, their fingers interlocked with each other’s.

“So, what are we gonna do now?” Seanagh asked looking up at Jenson with a small smile.

“Uh...” Jenson thought, looking over at the large fountain in the atrium of the hotel. “I’ve got an idea” He smirked, leading Seanagh to one of the marble benches at the base of the fountain. Jenson sat down while Seanagh stayed standing, looking up at the flowing water.

“What’s this then?” She asked.

“Don’t you know what a fountain is?” Jenson asked jokingly, patting the space next to him. “You look stunning in that dress by the way” Jenson smiled at her as she sat down.

“You told me that before” She shook her head as her cheeks began to flush red “And well... what’s there is to make a dress” She brushed her knuckles across the bare skin of her back, laughing nervously as she did so. She crossed her legs, brushing her leg against Jenson’s.

“You still look beautiful all the same” He placed his hand on Seanagh’s back, circling his thumb across her bare skin. She smiled at him, and he found that they were both leaning into each other. Jenson’s heart began to race as Seanagh placed her left hand in the crook of Jenson’s neck. _This is actually happening..._ Well it would have happened, if a drunken Kimi hadn’t fallen out of a nearby bush in fits of drunken laughter. _Trust Kimi to ruin it... again._ Jenson and Seanagh both stood up and went over to Kimi, pulling him up so he was at least standing, they forced his arms round each of their shoulders.

“Hey there gorgeous” Kimi said to Jenson in a drunken slur.

“You just keep your hands where we can see them Raikkonen” Seanagh said sternly as both her and Jenson dragged Kimi to the hotel lobby. Jenson was thankful when he saw Raven in the hotel lobby, who ran over to her looking both flustered and relieved.

“Kimi!... Thank you guys for finding him” Kimi half walked half stumbled towards Raven, who gladly took him in her arms. “How did your dinner go?” She asked.

“Great” Jenson and Seanagh both replied simultaneously.

“Okay, see you both tomorrow” Raven smiled and left with Kimi, leaving Jenson and Seanagh standing alone together. _What do I do? Will I try to kiss her again, or will I..._

“So, maybe we should call it a night” Seanagh tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. _Do we have to, do we have to call it a night?_

“Okay, I’ll walk you back to your room” Jenson lead her to the lift in the lobby as Seanagh pushed the button for the seventh floor once the doors were closed. The doors opened again and Jenson and Seanagh held hands as they walked down the empty hall.

“This is me” She sighed, Jenson looked at the numbers on the door. _719, need to remember that._ “Thanks for tonight” She went up on her tiptoes and kissed Jenson’s cheek.

“Thank _you_ , it was you that asked after all” Jenson leaned down and was surprised when Seanagh wrapped her arms round Jenson’s neck, leaning in for a kiss. Her lips felt so soft against his, almost like velvet, Jenson placed his hand on her waist, there was something about this kiss that felt different, in a good way that Jenson couldn’t even begin to explain. Seanagh pulled away and looked at Jenson for a few moments, he was trying so hard not to crack a smile, and even harder to stop himself from kissing her back. “Night Jense” Seanagh stepped in her room and closed the door and Jenson stood there stunned for a few moments before walking back down the hall towards the lift with a wide grin on his face; it had happened and they had kissed, and it was the best kiss in the world.

*  *  * 

_Sunday 22 nd September – Singapore Grand Prix After party_

“Come on Raven, you’ll love it, this is Amber Lounge we’re talking about!” Seanagh exclaimed as she walked with Raven towards the entrance to the Amber Lounge party. Seanagh was keen to go, but Raven, she wasn’t as excited.

“Well yeah but-” Raven started, grabbing Seanagh’s hand to force her to stop walking.

“You enjoyed the Amber Lounger party in Monaco right?” Raven nodded.

“But that was Monaco” Raven whined.

“Yeah and this is Singapore” Seanagh sighed, walking towards Raven in her white halter neck dress which fluttered at her knees, that contrasted with her bright red heels. “Raven you need to let your hair down, this is like your championship party!” Raven looked down at her feet with a sigh.

“Okay fine, you win” Raven gave in, walking with Seanagh towards the tall body guards that stood at each side of the entrance.

“Name” The one with the clipboard asked.

“Seanagh Palmer and Raven Sanders” Seanagh smiled brightly as they were handed two gold Amber Lounge wristbands. “Thank you” She grinned at them as Seanagh led Raven inside, stepping inside was like entering another world, Seanagh’s world. It was dark with gold lighting and the music was loud, but not too loud that you couldn’t have conversation with someone. “Hey look, there’s Jenson and Nico!” Seanagh exclaimed as she led Raven to the bar where Jenson and Nico were, Raven didn’t mind Jenson, but she wanted to be a million miles away from Nico. “Hey lads” Seanagh smiled at them both, greeting them with friendly hugs.

“I love this song” Jenson grinned as he took one look at the packed dance floor “You coming?” Jenson asked Seanagh, much to Raven’s dismay. “Sorry Raven, you’re a taken woman, got to keep my hands off” Jenson raised his hands, he seemed really happy for some reason.

“It’s alright Jenson” Raven replied, she could tell Nico was staring at her.

“So, you coming then? This one song then I’ll buy you a drink” Jenson looked down at Seanagh with a wide grin.

“Okay, watch this for me will you Rae?” Seanagh handed Raven her white clutch bag as Jenson led Seanagh onto the dance floor.

“Since when did they get so close, are they together now or something?” Nico asked, knocking back a glass of what looked like whiskey.

“I have no idea” Raven sighed as the bartender handed her the drink she ordered.

“I’ll get you that” Nico handed the bartender money.

“But-”

“You won the F3 championship right? Think of it as a present” Nico smiled weakly at her, being handed another glass of whiskey. “So where’s Kimi?”

“He’s at the hotel, he didn’t feel like coming, his back’s not great” Raven shrugged, sipping on her drink, she looked over at the dance floor and saw Jenson and Seanagh dancing together, they looked like the happiest people in the world. A complete contrast to Raven and Nico.

“Shame, he had a good race today” Nico nodded, also sipping on his drink. “Raven, can I tell you something?” Nico asked, Raven quickly finished her drink. _I’m gonna need more alcohol for this._ “I really like you, but you’re with Kimi I get that. So I was wondering, if me and you can just be friends” Raven looked at Nico surprised. _Nico wants to be friends... where did that come from?!_

“Uh...” Raven contemplated her answer; maybe being friends with Nico would be a lot less complicated than their current situation. “Yeah, being friends... sounds nice” Nico smiled and extended his hand, Raven gladly shook it as Nico ordered her another drink. They weren’t alone for long as Seanagh and Jenson returned, arms round each other and laughing at something that only they would find funny.

“Alright mate, two uh...” Jenson trailed off as he looked at the cocktail menu “Two Johnnie Walker’s please, on the rocks” Jenson smiled his normal charming smile down at Seanagh. _There’s something going on between them, there has to be._ Raven shook her head and resumed her conversation with Nico; it appeared that being friends with him would be better than ignoring him. And it turned out that he was quite funny (anyone’s sense of humour was better than Kimi’s, even Seanagh’s), and maybe, just maybe, being friends with Nico would be the best thing that had even happened to Raven, well he was more fun to be around than Kimi, that had to be a start.


	30. Korea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Korean Grand Prix Weekend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, I would like to start by saying how sorry I am for the severe lack of updates on this, I think an explanation is in order, I've been hit with some very unexpected computer problems (basically my laptop broke and getting a new one took much longer than expected) but my new laptop arrived to day, so I figured that I really needed to update this.
> 
> So here's the chapter, I hope you enjoy it, and the next one will be up tomorrow (again massive apologies for the lack of updates for the past couple of weeks)

_Thursday 3 rd October – Yeongam_

Since Jenson was the chairman of the Grand Prix Drivers Association – everyone called it the GPDA for short – he decided that it was about time that a meeting was going to be held, it was going to be done the same way it was last year, a pretty casual affair with dinner held straight after the meeting. Jenson had been planning the details on the flight over (with Seanagh’s help) and he was now on his way over to the restaurant where the meeting was going to be held, not all the drivers would be there, since Kimi, Adrian and Valtteri weren’t members, but everyone else would. Plus Jenson thought it was nice to have everyone sat together in a nice and friendly atmosphere before the race weekend. Jenson arrived at the restaurant and walked in, being greeted by the smell of food from the kitchen; it was enough to make his stomach rumble. One of the waitresses led Jenson to where the meeting was taking place; Jenson walked in and greeted his fellow drivers with a bright smile. _Time to get this underway._

*  *  *

The meeting had been a great success and Jenson was tucking into what he felt was his very well deserved dinner. Jenson was sat with his fellow Brits (apart from Seanagh who was sat at the other table with Felipe, Daniel and Nico Hulkenberg, but she wasn’t too far away that he was still able to speak to her) Romain was sitting next to Jenson, and he was quizzing the Frenchman about his new life as a father.

“It is the best feeling in the world” Romain explained with a smile “I’m sure you will all know how it feels when you have your own family”

“Tell me about it, I’m the happiest man in the world” Felipe remarked briefly joining in with the conversation. Jenson had always wanted a family.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so happy Romain, after summer break you were positively buzzing” Paul added, Max nodded in agreement.

“Yes, it’s quite funny actually. I was in the garage in Belgium on the Friday speaking with my engineers and Kimi just comes over to me and says ‘congratulations on the birth of your child’ and he walks off again, the first words he had ever said to me in two years” The story made some of the other drivers laugh, some just looked at Romain confused, Mark was busy focusing on his food. Jenson heard Seanagh’s laugher from the other table, he glanced over and saw her, Felipe, Daniel, Nico H and Seb all laughing at something. Jenson turned back round with a sigh. _She deserves to be happy._

“And meanwhile Jenson’s in dream land” Nico laughed, causing some of the others drivers around him to laugh as well, Mark and Paul in particular.

“Oh shut up Britney” Jenson retorted, causing a few remarks from the people around him saying that Jenson was in the middle of a diva fit.

“Hey, we all know being a diva is Britney’s job” Mark pointed to Nico who shrugged his shoulders with a small chuckle, jokingly flipping his hair afterwards. After another hour or so all nineteen drivers headed back to the hotel, Jenson was glad that he was sharing a taxi with Mark, Fernando and both Nico’s.

“Well, that was nice to see everyone without all the media” Fernando looked at Jenson as if he was thanking him.

“Oh it’s no problem” Jenson shrugged, pulling his phone out of his pocket to see if he had any messages, he didn’t.

“Yeah but Jenson, you might want to make it a little less obvious next time” Mark looked at Jenson with a knowing grin.

“Make what less obvious?”

“You know what I mean” Mark winked at him and it took Jenson a while to understand. “I won’t tell anyone”

“Tell anyone what?” Fernando and Nico Hulkenberg asked as the taxi pulled to a stop outside the driver’s hotel, Jenson could see Seanagh, Paul and Max walking into the lobby. _I might catch up with them if I run._

“Right Jenson, cough up your share” Mark pulled Jenson back to reality and he told Jenson how much he owed them, he handed over the money and made a dash for the hotel lobby, but by then Jenson’s fellow Brits had gone, and the lobby was completely empty. _Fuck._ “What did you run off for?” Mark asked, leading Jenson into the nearest lift. Jenson stayed silent walking into the lift, pressing the button for the fourth floor.

“What floor are you on Mark?”

“Eight” The Australian replied, looking at Jenson with the same knowing smile as before. “Team mate huh? This is complicated”

“Drop it Mark” Jenson sighed.

“Right, I know how you are with your feelings Jenson; want to keep them under wraps. I suppose you don’t want anyone hearing about Singapore” Jenson looked up at Mark shocked. _He knows, how on earth does he know? Unless..._ “You’re quite the charmer, don’t worry I won’t breathe a word” The lift doors opened as it reached the fourth floor. Jenson walked out, not even hearing Mark’s goodbye; he was more focused on how Mark knew about Singapore, and the likely hood of him keeping quiet.

 *  *  *

_Sunday 6 th October – Korean International Circuit, Yeongam_

Seb had a good feeling about today’s race, whether it was because he was starting on pole, because he was eighty nine points ahead of Fernando in the championship, or because Mark was starting in thirteenth place after his grid penalty, things were looking up for Seb, he was one step closer to win his fourth consecutive title, and he was going to do everything in his power to do just that.

*  *  *

For once Nico was actually looking forward to the race, he was closing the gap to Webber to just twelve points, and we was starting in a good place on the grid. He was in the second row of the grid in fourth place (he would have been starting in fifth if Webber hadn’t been given the ten-place grid penalty) he was next to Romain Grosjean, behind Lewis and in front of Felipe. Nico happily nestled himself in the cockpit of the car, putting on his bright yellow gloves and flipping down his visor before driving his car out of the garage and down the pitlane towards the circuit. _Maybe I can win this weekend, just maybe._

*  *  *

Jenson wasn’t really looking forward to the race; the conditions weren’t in his favour, he was starting in eleventh (as Seanagh had managed to out qualify him, again) and to top it all off he wasn’t in the best car on the grid, Jenson knew that, the rest of the team knew that, the whole world did. And it hurt, at the start of the season he thought that this year was going to be his year, but after China things just went downhill and continued to do so, it had gotten to the point where Jenson just wanted to the season to be over, of course it didn’t help since he still didn’t have a contract in place for next year, with it being an open secret that Martin wanted Alonso for 2015, that hurt as well. Jenson grudgingly pulled his car round the track of the formation lap. _Fifty five laps and it will all be over, over until Japan at least._

*  *  *

The formation lap was over and Seanagh eagerly waited for the race to begin, she wasn’t in the best place in the best car but it could have always been worse, she was in tenth place next to Kimi, the two Sauber’s were in front with Jenson and Ricciardo behind. It was difficult to see the red lights from where Seanagh was on the grid but she saw them, and counted then in her head. _One, two, three, four, five._ It felt like an eternity before they went out, but when they did Seanagh slammed her foot down on the accelerator, leaving her competitors for dust.

*  *  *

Sebastian felt like he was once again on top of the world; pole position, race win, fastest lap and he had led every single lap of the race. He jumped off the top step of the podium and waved at the sheering fans as he picked up his trophy, Red Bull and Pirelli caps as he followed Kimi and Romain to the post race press conference, it would be drag like it always was but Kimi would be there, so that wasn’t so bad. The conference was over within fifteen minutes meaning Seb had to do the remainder of his post-race win jobs; do some more press, get a photo with the team, head back to the hotel and go to the after party. It was all that about F1 that Seb wasn’t too keen on, all he wanted to do was race, but the post race parties weren’t so bad.

*  *  *

Tenth place, there could be nothing worse than tenth place. Maybe getting disqualified or having to retire, but tenth place in a McLaren?! Seanagh couldn’t understand it; neither could the rest of the team. The media had grasped the opportunity of Seanagh’s bad race with both hands

‘What happened out there?’

‘You won in Hungary, why are you not winning now?’

‘Is it the car or your personal performance that’s slipping?’

They just wouldn’t stop. It was for that reason the Seanagh was more than happy when she got back to the hotel, and she wasn’t the only one in a foul mood it seemed, Jenson wasn’t too happy, neither was Fernando but Mark looked like he was about to blow a gasket, he’d went out on lap 36 after Adrian Sutil went into him, causing his car to go on fire, a pretty dramatic way to retire Seanagh had thought. Seanagh had the unfortunate luck to be in the same lift as Mark and Adrian, and the tension could have been cut with a knife, with Seanagh’s five foot five frame sandwiched between the six foot tall men. Adrian got off on the fourth floor, making Mark sigh with relief.

“Well, that was uncomfortable” Mark stated as the lift continued to travel upward. “How’d your race go then?” Mark asked Seanagh, it was a perfectly reasonable question but one Seanagh didn’t want to get asked.

“Started tenth finished tenth, not much else to say really” She shrugged, Mark raised his eyebrows.

“Oh well...” The lift doors opened again on the eighth floor and Seanagh and Mark both walked out and headed in the same direction, since their rooms were directly opposite each other.

“I’m sorry about your race Mark” Seanagh sighed as she continued to walk with the Australian down the endless corridor.

“It’s alright it wasn’t your fault, still onwards and upwards I suppose, not that many races left” They had finally reached their rooms and Seanagh had opened her door and Mark grabbed her attention by standing next to the door frame. “Are you and Jenson coming to the party?”

“Probably, you’ll find us both at the bar drinking the pain away most likely” She replied in the most blunt tone possible.

“Oh well, see you there” He clapped her on the shoulder with a smile before disappearing inside his hotel room. _He has to be the happiest Australian I have ever met._ Daniel Ricciardo walked past at that point, greeting Seanagh with a wide smile. _Okay maybe Daniel is._ Seanagh didn’t mind Daniel, they’d spoken a few times and he seemed like a nice lad, but Seanagh wasn’t in the mood for anything other than food, a little bit of alcohol and sleep, preferably in that order. Seanagh pulled out her phone to see that Jenson was calling her; she answered him with a heavy sigh.

“Hey Jenson” She leaned against her door, running her free had through her fringe.

“Hey, are you going to the post race party tonight?”

“Probably” Seanagh replied “I’ll need something to make me forget this weekend”

“What happened to you? You were in a good mood before the race” Jenson sounded concerned, Seanagh found it sweet that he cared.

“There’s a list, a long one” Seanagh sighed as there was a knock on the door “Hang on a minute” She opened the door and whoever it was walked in, closed the door and wrapped their arms round her so tightly that she could only just manage breathing. “Hey Jenson” She muttered against Jenson’s chest, breathing in the familiar scent of his cologne.

“Hey” She felt him hug her tighter as Jenson rested his chin on the top of Seanagh’s head.

“What’s with the mood then?” Jenson loosened his grip and he and took a step back.

“I’m not happy with the way my race went and we’ve got Japan next weekend and I doubt I’ll do much better” She sighed.

“Maybe you will maybe you won’t, what’s important is that you don’t let it get to you, things don’t get better if you cling on to things that get you down, you need to keep positive” Seanagh rolled her eyes at Jenson’s remark, walking away from him and slumping down on the sofa.

“What if it is me though, what if it is me doing badly and not the car that’s bad”

“You can’t pin it down to just those two things, there are so many factors you haven’t accounted for” Jenson began, sitting down next to his team mate. “Look, I’ve had my fair share of bad races, but things will get better, just don’t put too much pressure on yourself okay?”

“Okay”

“So” Jenson began as he stood up “I will see you at dinner before the post race party alright, it’s no fun without you there”

“Okay fine I’ll go!” Seanagh whined, giving in to Jenson’s natural charm, almost pushing him out of the open door. He laughed as he closed the door behind him. _He is such a..._ Seanagh didn’t even know what to call him. Now that was a first.

*  *  *

“So, Jenson did convince you to go to the party then?” Mark remarked as Seanagh stepped out of her hotel room the same time that Mark left his.

“Yep, he somehow managed to make me go” She huffed nearly slamming the door.

“Still, you’ve scrubbed up nicely” Mark commented at Seanagh blue dress and white heeled shoes.

“I hope that’s just a compliment Mark...” They both laughed; Mark got on well with Seanagh, she wasn’t an arrogant arse like Seb was seventy percent of the time. Malaysia sprang to mind... Mark tried to forget about that, again.

“So, are you feeling better about yourself after Jenson spoke to you?”

“Yeah... how did you know Jenson was there?” Seanagh asked, pressing the button for the lift.

“X-ray vision, no he came to see me just after seeing you. You make that man smile like a crazed school boy you know that right?” Seanagh looked at Mark with the most quizzical expression he had ever seen. “Never mind, forget I said anything” Mark looked round to see if any other drivers or team members were heading towards the lift. “Hey Dan!” Mark smiled at his fellow Aussie.

“Alright Mark, hi Seanagh” He waved awkwardly at her; poor bloke didn’t know how to act around her. The two Australians began conversation about their awful races; Daniel had retired due a technical fault on his car. “Still at least I didn’t go out in flames” He chuckled slightly, as did Mark, joking about it was better than being in a mood over it.

“Yeah I feel sorry for the engineers; they’ve got to put the car back together before Friday, my lot are heading over tonight so they’ve got as much time as possible” Mark explained as the lift finally arrived on their floor, Mark and Daniel let Seanagh in first before following her inside.

“That’ll be tough then, that’s four, maybe five days to get the car fixed” She remarked, pressing the button for the ground floor.

“Yeah... poor lot” Mark sighed as the lift stopped on the fourth floor as Adrian, Paul and Jenson all bounded in, Jenson with the usual school boy smile plastered all over his face. Seanagh’s cheeks would turn the usual crimson (that always happened when she was around him) and it was a mystery to Mark how neither McLaren drivers noticed. Mark was distracted by Paul and Adrian speaking to him about something, he couldn’t quite remember what it was, but the lift finally arrived at the ground floor and all six drivers piled out the lift and headed to the hotel restaurant for dinner before heading to the post race party. Food and lots of beer, it was the perfect remedy to a bad race weekend.

*  *  *

After the first few drinks Raven was glad Kimi had dragged her along to the party, he was in a very good mood because of his podium finish and as a result was in the process of getting drunk with Seb, although the German was intent on staying sober, which was surprising since he was known to want to enjoy his victories. Another puzzling sight was Jenson and Seanagh, huddled together at the corner of the bar; they both had drinks in hand and serious expressions on both of their faces, after a few minutes they stood up, shook hands and both walked in opposite directions, Jenson went to speak to Paul and Mark, and Seanagh had went to speak to Seb. Raven was pulled back to reality by her drunk boyfriend falling over as he looked as if he was trying to get back to the bar.

“Kimi, I think you’ve had enough to drink, I’m taking you back to the hotel” Raven hauled Kimi up off the floor with the help of Romain, who was leaving anyway. “Thanks Romain” Raven smiled at the Frenchman as they had successfully gotten Kimi into a taxi.

“You’re welcome Raven” He smiled at her brightly, he had reason to be happy, a good race result to please his baby boy back home. Raven got into the taxi and sat next to Kimi, who had now fallen asleep  as Romain told the driver the address of the driver’s hotel, once Kimi was safely clipped into his seat the taxi slowly pulled away into the night.

 *  *  *

_Monday 7 th October – Driver’s Hotel, Yeongam_

Seanagh had woken up in the middle of the night – well it was more like four in the morning – her hangover had kicked in and it didn’t help with the fact that she was sleeping in someone else’s bed. The events of the post race party were still swirling round in Seanagh’s head it was all confusing, and it all happened so fast.

_“You deserve someone that makes you truly happy Seanagh, you’re a wonderful woman, and you deserve at least that”_

Jenson’s statement had thrown Seanagh off completely, she was going to say something about Singapore and that she might have wanted things to go further between her and Jenson, but what Jenson said to her at the bar made Seanagh think that Jenson just wanted to be friends, and so after they shook hands at the bar and Jenson left Seanagh had went to Seb and said what needed to be said. There was a sudden groan from the man that was no longer sleeping next to Seanagh, he sat up and rubbed his eyes, glaring at the bed side light that had been turned on.

“Sorry, did I wake you?” She said to him sweetly.

“No it’s fine, I think my hangover’s kicking in” He swung his legs out of the bed and crouched down by the mini fridge “Water?” He asked his voice still deep and husky from sleep.

“Please” Seanagh stretched out her legs and looked around the hotel room; it was similar to hers but also slightly different.

“There you go” The water was handed to her along with a kiss on the cheek.

“Seb...” Seanagh rolled her eyes and looked at the German, his hair was still blond – much to Seanagh’s delight – and he seemed to be growing what looked like stubble, it looked weird on him since he looked like he was nineteen instead of twenty six, but Seanagh didn’t mind.

“What” He laughed, leaning in for a kiss “I need to look after my girlfriend”


	31. Race 15: Japan 2013

_Sunday 13 th October – Japanese Grand Prix, Suzuka_

It was two hours before the race and Jenson was beginning to feel nervous, very nervous. Jenson and his team of engineers were having a final look over the strategy for this weekend, three stops could work, it would mean that Jenson could use the tyres a little bit more...

“Hey, Jenson” He looked up from his computer screen and saw Seanagh standing behind the row of computers that were in the middle of the garage, almost hiding her from view. He walked over to her, the top half of his racing overalls were resting on his hips as he tried to keep cool in the slight heat.

“Hey” Jenson was stood by her so he too was hidden by the computers.

“I um... just wanted to say good luck, you know for the race today” Seanagh nervously admitted, they always wished each other luck before a race; it wasn’t like this weekend was any different.

“Oh thanks, you too” Jenson smiled at her and Seanagh began to turn round to return to her side of the garage, Jenson placed his hand on her upper arm to stop her, she stopped and turned to face him.

“Yeah...?” She asked, she could clearly see the look of concern on Jenson’s face, it was clear as day. “Jense are you alright?”

“I’m fine, it’s just...” He trailed off for a moment; his hand was still resting on Seanagh’s arm. “There’s one more thing...”

“Yeah?”

“Well... I’ll probably sound like some soppy over protective sod or whatever, and you probably think I’m rambling again but...” Jenson looked right into Seanagh’s eyes, slowly brushing his thumb against her arm. “Just... be careful out there, you know for the team and the fans... but also... for me, I don’t want to see you get hurt; not after what happened to you on Friday”

“Don’t worry, if I can go through Monaco and Singapore unscathed then...” She stopped, placing her hand on top of Jenson’s; it was enough to make all of Jenson’s unease disappear. “I’ll be fine” she reassured him with a smile. Jenson nodded and their hands fell to their side as they just stood there and looked at each other for a few moments. “Jenson...” Seanagh began, looking up at him nervously. “Please be careful out there” her voice dropped to a quiet whisper “F-for me” She stammered quietly. Jenson wrapped his arms round her and pulled her into a tight hug, softly whispering in her ear

“Don’t worry I will, I promise”

*  *  *

Raven had just left the McLaren garage after wishing both Jenson and Seanagh luck for the race when she had ran into Nico on her way back to the Lotus garage.

“Oh... hey Nico” Raven smiled brightly at the German.

“Hey, how are you?” He asked, happily returning the smile, running his fingers through his blond hair.

“I’m good thanks” Raven replied, awkwardly fiddling with the hem of her dress, things were a little less awkward with Nico now, but Raven felt slightly on edge with Kimi being less than a hundred metres away.

“I’m surprised to see you out here; I thought you’d be in the Louts garage” Nico remarked, slowly zipping up his race suit.

“Yeah I was over at the McLaren garage, wishing Jenson and Seanagh luck for the race today”

“Oh, that was nice of you” Nico remarked, looking down at the tarmac. “Well I best be going, my engineers will want to see me” Nico clapped his hands together and began to walk past Raven; she took in a deep breath and spoke.

“Good luck for today Nico” She heard him turn round and look at her with a small smile.

“Thanks”

“And... be careful” Raven added.

“I’m always careful” Nico smirked, walking backwards towards the Mercedes garage “See you Rae” He waved and Raven had to force her feet to move towards the Lotus garage. _Well, that wasn’t as bad as I thought._ Raven walked into the Lotus garage, being greeted by some of Kimi’s engineers; Kimi wasn’t really in a good place with the team, they still hadn’t paid him, and there had been a bad atmosphere hanging round his side of the garage after he had announced he was going back to Ferrari, everything was fine on Grosjean’s side of the garage of course.

“Hey Raven” Kimi greeted Raven with a small kiss on the cheek – he didn’t like being too affectionate in the garage in front of everyone, of course when Nico was there it would be a completely different story. And that was something that Raven really didn’t like.

*  *  *

By the afternoon all twenty two drivers were fully focused on the race. It was roughly fifteen minutes before the start; Seanagh was stood by her car at the eleventh spot on the grid speaking to her race engineer, as DC came over with a camera from the BBC. _He wants an interview, great._

“Hello Seanagh can I get a quick word?” Seanagh plastered on a smile as she nodded, she knew that you had to be nice to the media no matter what mood you were in. “You’ve got sight of the front runners, do you need to do something special at the start to get some points or to try and pick it up later in the race?”

“Well probably a bit of both really, trying to get some over takes in at the start, try and not damage the car so it doesn’t mess up my strategy, and yeah just hoping for a good race today” Seanagh squinted her eyes so she wasn’t blinded by the bright sunlight, she probably looked quite funny on the TV screens back in Britain.

“You haven’t had the best of races leading up to this weekend; will you be trying to improve your race performance this weekend?”

“Yeah definitely, um I haven’t had the best of seasons as you know David but, you know I will be aiming to get some points this weekend, but uh yeah we’ll see” Seanagh replied as David thanked her for the quick interview and left, heading towards Kimi. _Good luck with that one David._

*  *  *

Seb looked up from the second spot on the grid as the red lights began to appear above his head, he was determined to beat Mark today, he wanted that win, Seb knew he could win the title this weekend he won and if Fernando finished ninth or lower, it was possible, even if the chances were slim given they were the only conditions under which Seb could win his fourth title. The five red lights glowed above Seb before they went out; Seb slammed his foot against the throttle, keep to take first place off Mark. Hamilton came up from Seb’s left side as Romain went shooting past his right side as he took the lead. Seb felt a small shunt and the front of the car didn’t feel quite right.

“I might have positional front wing damage, you will have to take a look” He reported to the pit wall over the team radio, it didn’t take long for Seb to get a reply.

“Okay Sebastian, from data and visually everything looks fine, stay out” Seb was relieved at that, but he was in third place as a result, now all he had to do was catch Romain and Mark. _Shouldn’t be too much trouble, all I need to do after that is win._

*  *  *

It was lap twelve when Seanagh decided to take her first pit stop, she wasn’t doing very well, but she knew that a fresh set of tyres would help her strategy. She drove past the Mercedes garage when Nico went out in front of her she slammed on the brakes and drove into the box for her pit stop for a new set of prime tyres. She drove out of the pit lane slightly angry at Nico.

“What happened there?” Seanagh asked infuriated over team radio.

“We have no idea Seanagh we’ve spoken to the FIA, spoken to the FIA” Seanagh shook her head as she came out behind Jenson. That was the last thing she wanted.

*  *  *

“What a drive Seb, great job you’ve managed that fantastically well, brilliant drive brilliant drive well done”

“Awesome mate, awesome”

“Yes boys, ichiban, ichiban! Yes boys unbelievable we brought that car home, you’re the best team in the world, I love you” Seb was grinning from ear to ear as he drove his car round the circuit for the victory lap. He was more than delighted, his ninth win of the season, from what Christian had told him later or the title fight would still be going on in India as Fernando finished in fourth place. But then again, he was more likely to win the title in India anyway. It seemed that now everything in Seb’s life was falling into place, race win, having a good shot at winning his fourth title, and now having the most perfect girlfriend to share it all with.


	32. I Want You To Tell Me The Truth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys :) Hope you've been enjoying the two chapters I've put up over the last couple of days, and I hope you like this one as well :)
> 
> (Next chapter will be up on Saturday)

_Thursday 25 th October – Drivers Hotel, New Delhi_

Sebastian liked to be in control of a lot of things, he put it down to the fact that he was a racing driver, when you have to be in control of everything one hundred percent of the time, but Seb couldn’t help it when his need for control occurred off track as well as on track. He had managed to get out of the paddock and back to the hotel, he’d have to pay Heikki back for having to cover for him, but that would be worried about another time, right now Seb had his own list of priorities; win the title this weekend, and find out why Seanagh wasn’t answering his texts or calls. The lift arrived on the floor that Seanagh’s room was on, and he rushed down the hall glancing at every single one of the doors looking for the right room. His pace slowed when he saw Seanagh standing by her door speaking to Jenson, that was probably the last person Seb wanted to see, one of the few downsides of his girlfriend being a McLaren driver. He approached her cautiously, taking his time so that he’d be there when Jenson had gone, not that everything goes to plan of course.

“Hey Seb” Jenson smiled at him, he tried his best to return the smile as he placed his hands in his pockets, he had never felt uneasy around Jenson before, but it was probably the fact that Seb was going out with his teammate behind Jenson’s back. “Anyway I best be off, I’ve got an interview with someone, I’ll see you at the circuit yeah?”

“Yep, see you then Jenson” Jenson waved and walked down the hall, Seb not turning round until he saw Jenson get in the lift.    

“Are you okay Seb, you look a little pale” Seanagh placed her hand on his shoulder, looking at him concerned.

“Yeah, I’m fine” Seb nodded unconvincingly as Seanagh opened her hotel room door, he walked in with Seanagh following.

“Seb...” She began, pulling him into a hug “I know you’re lying to me, what’s wrong?”

“I think we should tell people... about us” Seb already knew the expression on Seanagh’s face before he saw it; her eyebrows were raised, and she was looking at him both in surprise and in slight annoyance.

“Seb, it’s only been two weeks!”

“I know but, I don’t mean everyone. Just Christian, and Martin, maybe Britta and Richard but...”

“But nothing Seb, I don’t want-” Seanagh started but was cut off by someone knocking at the door; she swore under her breath and went over to answer the door.  

“Hello Seanagh, mind if I come in?” She simply nodded as Martin Whitmarsh walked in with Christian. “Seb, what the-”

“What’s all this about then Seb?” Christian asked, Seanagh closed the door as she shot a worried glance at Martin.

“Well...” Seb walked to the other side of the room so he was standing next to Seanagh. “We’ve got something to tell you...”

*  *  *

Seanagh couldn’t quite believe the events of the past few minutes, she was however certain that she was going to murder Seb.

“I don’t really know what to say...” Seb and Christian had left, leaving Seanagh with Martin, correction,  a very annoyed Martin.

“I...” Seanagh started, Martin looked at her. “I didn’t expect him to say anything; he didn’t even tell me about this!” She threw her hands in the air. “But, I am sorry; this is probably the last thing you expected”

“Hmmm...” Martin frowned, folding his arms. _Well there’s my 2014 contract gone!_ “It is and it isn’t, I won’t breathe a word about this but the second I think that you’re relationship with Sebastian is affecting your driving, then you’re off the team. Understand?” Seanagh nodded.

“Yes Martin”

“Good, I’ll be expecting you at the circuit in half an hour” Martin left Seanagh’s hotel room, with Seanagh’s mind still ticking over. _I’m still gonna murder Seb..._

*  *  *

Nico was happily walking through the paddock after attending the drivers press conference (yet another bore, not that Nico wanted to discuss it) when he had ran into a beaming Sebastian.

“Hey Sebastian” Nico spoke to him in their native German.

“Hey, how are you?”

“Good, finally got out of the press conference, yourself?”

“Great” Nico looked at Seb quizzically; he had never seen Seb so happy before.

“You look it, care to share?” Seb’s smile faded slightly and he looked round, Nico had no idea why.

“Only if you don’t tell anyone” Nico nodded in understanding, he wanted to know why Seb was being so cautious. “Seanagh and me... she’s my girlfriend”

Nico hadn’t expected to hear that.

*  *  *

Jenson found it odd that he was actually feeling positive about racing this weekend, it was either that or he was still on a buzz after what happened in Singapore, there was something about it that felt so different, in a good way. Although saying that Jenson hadn’t seen Seanagh since this morning, after Seb had decided to join them... Jenson had to keep telling himself that Seanagh wouldn’t let anything happen between her and Seb; she didn’t seem like the type of person that would do that, at least, that was what Jenson thought. Jenson was walking through the paddock when he almost walked into Nico, who looked so shocked that he could barely move.

“Woah... you alright Nico?” Jenson asked, Nico’s eyes were fixated on him as he muttered something in German.

“Yeah, I’m fine” He murmured in English.

“I was just wondering, you looked like you’d heard some really bad news” They both began to walk to their team buildings when Nico rolled his eyes.

“Not bad just... surprising”

“Oh Yeah?” Jenson asked, mainly out of curiosity. Nico stopped walking and looked up at Jenson, opening and closing his mouth like a goldfish.

“I’m not sure if you want to hear, plus I wasn’t meant to tell anyone”

“Oh go on mate, I won’t tell anyone. I’m good with secrets” With Jenson being in such a good mood he felt sure that Nico would tell Jenson his news, Nico was probably over reacting – as usual.

“You probably know anyway, but keep this quiet yeah?” Jenson nodded and Nico moved so he was stood right next to Jenson, and he spoke in a hushed voice. “Well, Seb told me that him and Seanagh are you know... together” There was something,  Jenson  wasn’t sure what, but it made him turn round and run to the car park and get in his car as he drove back to the hotel as fast as he possibly and legally could. Seanagh and Seb couldn’t be in a relationship, there was just no way.

*  *  *

“You’re what?!” Raven exclaimed, flinging her arms around as she started what turned out to be a very long rant. Seanagh just stood there and watched her, Kimi was with her, but he was sitting on the nearest chair scrolling on his phone. Seanagh had never intended to tell Raven about her and Seb, she wanted to wait a month or two. “…and I still can’t believe you didn’t even tell me, I have to find out through Ni-” A hasty knock at the door made Raven stop speaking, Seanagh went over and opened the door, completely shocked at who just stormed in.

*  *  *

 _I’m crazy; I really shouldn’t be doing this. What am I even doing?_ Jenson walked down the corridor both flustered and angry. He couldn’t believe what Nico had told him, I couldn’t have been true, even if it was Jenson just couldn’t accept it. He stopped right outside her door, he looked at the room number for a few moments before knocking on it hastily, the second Seanagh opened the door Jenson stormed in, now feeling slightly more angry than flustered. He barely noticed that Raven and Kimi were there, as Kimi walked into him by accident, Raven could be heard from halfway down the hall.

“Jenson…” Seanagh looked at him blankly; Jenson was breathing heavily trying to catch his breath, since he stupidly ran through the hotel. They both looked at each other for a moment, both thinking of what they wanted to say.

“I want you to tell me the truth, are you and Seb…” Jenson couldn’t finish off the sentence; Seanagh looked down at her feet, pressing her lips together as she looked to be in deep thought.

“Y-yeah. Yeah we are” The air around him caught in Jenson’s lungs, he didn’t think that hearing it would hurt so much.

“Well… you could have told me, rather than having to find out though someone” Her head jerked up in confusion, Jenson was trying to hide the anger in his voice.

“Who, I haven’t told anyone?”

“Nico” Jenson spat.

“But I… Seb…” Jenson could begin to feel adrenalin pump through him; he didn’t expect to be so angry over such a little thing.

“Do you have any idea just how stupid you’re being?!” Jenson bit down on his tongue. _Why did I say that, I shouldn’t have said that._

“Excuse me?!” Seanagh exclaimed, now she was angry as well.

“W-well he’s another driver, on another team”

“Yeah, and you don’t think I know that. I’m not stupid Jenson!” She raised her voice at him; Jenson could feel that air catching in his throat again. “And I know what you told me in Korea Jenson, but he really does make me happy, and if you can’t accept that then…” Seanagh crossed her arms, a glint of anger still very noticeable in Seanagh’s green eyes.

“Fine” Jenson muttered “Fine” He repeated firmly as he stormed out of Seanagh’s hotel room, not even daring to look back.


	33. Button Problems

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seanagh's having problem's with Jenson, and he's got some problems of his own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quite a short chapter (sorry about that) next one will be up tomorrow.

_Saturday 26 th October – Drivers Hotel_

This weekend, Sebastian knew, was the weekend that he might win his fourth consecutive world championship; he’d join the list of the greats, and become the youngest four time world champion. It was a lot to take in. Seb was currently standing in the bathroom in his hotel room, washing cold water over his face as he tried to keep himself calm, safe to say it wasn’t working.

“Seb?” He heard a voice call out; relieved to hear that it was Seanagh’s

“In here” He patted his face dry with a fluffy white towel; he placed it down by the sink as Seanagh walked in.

“You okay?”

“No” Sebastian shook his head; pressing his hands against his face, that didn’t work wither. He felt Seanagh place her hand on his upper arm, he looked at her, seeing the warmest of smiles. “I’m sorry” He sighed “I didn’t want to be mess in front of you, unfair advantage for the race and all that” Seanagh giggled slightly, bringing some ease to Sebastian’s worried state.

“You don’t have to win the title this weekend, you know that right”

“Yes, but I feel like… that I have to”

“I know…” Seanagh looked at him with a faint smile; something else was clearly on her mind.

“Are _you_ okay?” He asked, Seanagh turned away.

“Yeah I’m fine” Was the reply, which Seb was sure that it was a lie.

“Seanagh…” She had left the bathroom by this point and was sitting perched on the end of the bed, carefully picking at her fingernails. Sebastian sighed, sitting next to his girlfriend and putting his arm round her shoulders. “What’s wrong?” He muttered against her hair, softly kissing the top of her head.

“It’s Jenson he… he found out, about us”

“Oh…” Seb looked to the floor; the only other person he told was Nico, which must have meant that…

“You didn’t tell him, did you?”

“No…” Seb shook his head, hoping Seanagh wouldn’t ask him how Jenson found out.

“Oh well” Seanagh stood up, turning to Seb and holding out her hand. “Me and you need to be at the circuit soon…” Sebastian stood up, taking Seanagh’s hand and lacing their fingers together.

“Yeah…” Seb trailed off, looking at Seanagh before leaning down and kissing her, cupping her face with his free hand. It was just perfect, and was exactly what Seb needed to calm his nerves. “We really should be going now” Sebastian sighed, resting his forehead against Seanagh’s. She nodded and led him toward the door, they walked out dropping hands and headed to the nearest lift, Sebastian was wanted to stay bin that hotel room for as long as he possibly could.

*  *  *

After qualifying the last place Jenson wanted to be was speaking to the media, of course Seb would be on pole and Seanagh would have out qualified him again. Walking out of the press pen he headed straight for the team building to get changed before heading back to the hotel. He hadn’t spoken to Seanagh since Thursday, and he didn’t intend to at any point at all tomorrow. He was still pissed off at her about the whole Seb thing, but he still didn’t want to admit why. He had really hoped that after everything that happened between them in Singapore that they might have been able to delve deeper into the friendship that they had, and turn it into something more, he never expected Seanagh to misunderstand what he had said to her in Korea. He walked past Seanagh as he entered the team building, their eyes briefly met before she went to speak to her race engineers, and Jenson was met with a now recurring sinking feeling, followed quickly by a pang of guilt. Jenson could be really stupid sometimes, falling for your team mate is never a good idea.


	34. Race 16: India 2013

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a perfect weekend, or is it?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry about that chapter being up late, I had some homework due in today, which had to take priority, hope you like this chapter :)

_Sunday 27 th October – Buddh International Circuit_

By race day there were mixed emotions in the paddock, the fans that had came in their droves to watch the race were filled with excitement at the possibility of seeing Sebastian Vettel crowned as the 2013 world champion, but Red Bull were more on the anxious side. All the international media were asking about was the prospect of Seb and Red Bull winning their respective championships this weekend, and it looked likely since Seb was starting on pole, and that he had won every Indian Grand Prix since 2011. It wasn’t a bad way to start the weekend.

*  *  *

Sebastian was in the garage, getting ready to get in the car. He pulled the balaclava over his head and made sure it was fixed in place before putting on his helmet which was handed to him by Heikki.

“Good luck for today, you go out there and win” He spoke with confidence as Seb fastened the strap under his chin, securing his helmet on his head before getting in the car, when he was safely buckled in Sebastian flipped his visor down and drove the car out of the garage and towards the circuit.

*  *  *

Nico was very happy with starting the race at second on the grid; he knew that both Red Bull cars were in a league of their own, so to Nico, second place felt like pole position. In a way he was keeping up with his ‘best of the best’ mantra he was following. He was standing by his car, finalising his strategy with his race engineer. He’d done some interviews with the media and now wanted to focus on the race. Nico was happy as he’d had breakfast with Raven that morning, which felt nice. He was glad that he put forward the prospect of them just being friends, Nico didn’t have to worry about any awkward situations between them, but he still couldn’t quite deny the fact that he still had feeling for her, even if they were slightly muted by this point. He refused to give up on her. One day, Nico knew, they’d have each other.

*  *  *

A few laps into the race, Seb was comfortable with the lead he had gained, he knew that a fifth place would secure the drivers’ championship title for him, but Seb was Seb and he wanted what he always wanted – he wanted to win.

*  *  *

Jenson’s weekend had just gone from bad to worse; there was a problem with his car on the last lap, he had been lapped anyway so he drove his car into the pits, and was more than happy when he got out of his McLaren.

“Sorry about that Jenson, we’ll get it fixed for Abu Dhabi” Jenson’s race engineer Dave looked at Jenson sympathetically, patting him on the shoulder.

“It’s alright, sorry I couldn’t manage another lap” Jenson shrugged, unzipping his overalls and tying them at his waist. Seanagh’s car arrived ten minutes later, she had finished fifth. _She would do better than me wouldn’t she!_ A small part of Jenson felt bad about the fact he hadn’t spoken to her since Thursday, but when she walked in grinning, being congratulated by Martin for doing so well, Jenson felt the blood boil under his skin.

“Jenson! Terrible luck mate, we’ll have that sorted for you by next weekend. But you’ll have to go and do some press though, you can just go with Seanagh” Martin apologised to Jenson about his car problems, he didn’t quite register the last part of what Martin said.

“Uh, yeah sure” Jenson nodded. Martin went back to the pit will as Seanagh walked over towards Jenson’s side of the garage. The looked at each other in silence before she lead the way to the press pen, she greeted them with a beaming smile, Jenson wasn’t as optimistic. After a few minutes the journalists almost exploded with excitement as Sebastian entered the media pen, everyone wanted to speak to the now quadruple world champion first.

“Yes I’m very happy to have won the championship here, it’s a circuit that I enjoy driving and I’m very pleased that Red Bull the team could take the constructors title here as well”

“Is there anyone that you’d like to thank for your win today?”

“Well the team for sure if it wasn’t for them then I don’t think I would have been capable to win today, Adrian and Christian especially. Christian has run the team successfully for a long time and Adrian has given me a fantastic car to drive this year. My family too have been very supportive and my girlfriend as well, she’s been keeping me grounded and very supportive as well so I think my win is for her and for my family” Although Jenson couldn’t see him, he could hear the grin in Seb’s voice. And Jenson was glad that he left when he did, or he might not have been responsible for his actions.

*  *  *

Sebastian was beaming when he walked into the hotel; it was a while later than some of the other teams because Seb wanted to help the guys pack up everything before the cars were sent off to Abu Dhabi, it was the least he could do to thank them for such a perfect weekend.

“Guys I have to go… I need to speak to someone” Seb jogged off as he saw Seanagh go into one of the lifts in the lobby, since her room was on the third floor he figured that if he ran up the stairs that he would catch her and surprise her, being a little spontaneous never hurt anyone.

“I am only looking out for you here!”

“Really?! Because to me Jenson it sounds like you’ve got a touch of jealousy!” Seb heard raised voices and hid in the stairwell so he wouldn’t be seen, it sounded like Jenson and Seanagh needed to…

“Jealous?! Why would I be jealous of him?”

“Well it would explain why you haven’t spoken to me all weekend, or that whenever you see me or Seb to go red in the face”

“Well that’s because…” Jenson paused, breathing heavily, it sounded like he hadn’t taken the news of Seb and Seanagh to well.

“Because…?”

“Because he’s not good for you, one day he’ll break it off and you’ll be hurt, and I’ll have to be there picking up the pieces of _his_ mess the _he_ left you in. You’ll see” Jenson spoke sternly as he walked away from Seanagh –  and thankfully away from Seb. Sebastian waited a few moments before going to see Seanagh (more like walking into but never mind).

“S-Seb?” She broke into heavy sobs, wrapping her arms round Seb’s neck.

“It’s okay, it’s okay” He held her tightly in his arms. “It’s not true what he said; I really, really like you. I wouldn’t have been able to win today is it wasn’t for you” She leaned back and looked at Seb with tears streaming down her face.

“Why is he even being like this Seb? I’ve not done anything wrong”

“Why don’t you come to the bar with me tonight, have a few drinks with me and the lads, they won’t mind having you there” They were now walking along the hallway, heading towards Seanagh’s room, holding hands with Seanagh resting her head on Seb’s arm.

“Okay…” She sniffled “I’ll meet you here” She fumbled with the keycard for her room; Seb ended up doing it for her.

“I’ll text you” Seb leaned in, kissed her and left for his room which was on the next floor. Sebastian was going to kill Jenson when he saw him.

*  *  *

It wasn’t until eleven at night when Seb met Seanagh at her hotel room. She’d had a shower and was wearing a navy dress with gold heels and a red clutch bag; she figured that it wouldn’t hurt wearing Red Bull colours around Red Bull personnel. She was still upset about her second argument with Jenson – he was initially mad because he thought that it was stupid that Seb had dedicated his championship win to her since they had only been together for two weeks, and it all went downhill from there. Seb was wearing a powder blue shirt and darker blue jeans with some white trainers, it wasn’t the smartest of outfits, but it was Seb, and that was just how Seanagh liked him. She was happy, no matter what Jenson thought.


	35. The (Semi) Apology

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's another chapter (just in time for the race tomorrow), there's a little swearing in this one (not much but I figured that I should warn you guys just in case). I hope you enjoy the chapter :)

_Thursday 14 th November – Austin_

Jenson knew that he shouldn’t have been going round and round the hotel looking for his team mate, but he just couldn’t help himself. The spark of curiosity was ignited when Martin had asked him where Seanagh was, as she hadn’t made an appearance at breakfast, it didn’t help her situation that she was due at the drivers’ press conference in forty five minutes. Martin had given Jenson Seanagh’s room number and he’d managed to convince Vanessa to lend him her spare key card, something that Seanagh’s physio was very reluctant to let go of. Jenson arrived at the door and looked at it for a few moments before knocking on it three times.

“Seanagh” He called through, getting no reply. He tried again to no avail, so he knocked on the door again a little louder, grabbing the unwanted attention of a few Ferrari personnel. _Just answer the door..._ Jenson walked backward until he met the opposite wall, staring at the door in the hope that it would open by itself. Fernando and a couple of Ferrari guys walked past Jenson, Fernando being the only one to say hi. It was only when they were at the other end of the corridor that Jenson resumed knocking on Seanagh’s hotel room door. “Seanagh its Jenson, I need to see you right now. It’s important” Jenson was again met by more silence and a buzzing from his phone, he pulled it out of his pocket and read the text message from Seanagh that was on his screen.

 _‘What do you want?’_ Thinking up an excuse Jenson began to type out a reply.

 _‘Martin sent me looking for you, he said you weren’t at breakfast’_ Jenson knew saying that he was looking for her because he was worried about her wouldn’t be a good idea; he knew it wouldn’t sit well with Seanagh, not after what happened in India.

 _‘Let me guess, you’ve got my spare key? You might as well come in then’_ Taking the invitation Jenson put his phone back in his pocket and swiped the keycard and let himself into Seanagh’s room.

“I’m in here” Jenson followed what sounded like Seanagh’s voice into the bedroom, which he hesitantly entered with partially closed eyes. “Hey” opening his eyes fully Jenson saw Seanagh curled up in bed surrounded by a pile of tissues.

“Hi” Jenson looked at her with a weak smile, that pang of guilt was once again beginning to rear its ugly head. “You alright” Jenson’s hand was still resting on the door handle in case he needed to leave quickly.

“Not really I...” Seanagh paused mid-sentence and sneezed loudly. “... I’ve got a cold, a bad one”

“I can tell” Jenson laughed nervously, scratching the back of his neck. Seanagh’s voice was hoarse and considering her nose must have been all bunged up her pronunciation of some words was a little off.

“You’re not going to drag me to the press conference are you?” Seanagh looked at him with pleading eyes.

“Sorry, Richard said he’d be pretty mad if you weren’t there, and Martin...”

“I get it” Seanagh sniffled as she got out of bed, she was already dressed in her team uniform, but her hair was a mess. “I’ll go” Seanagh stood in front of the dressing room table mirror and began to plait her hair before she put on her team cap.

“You’re uniform’s different” Jenson thought out loud, Seanagh never wore the rocket red and white lace team top, she always wore the same shirt that Jenson did. She was also wearing her grey team jacket (most likely to keep herself warm), and Jenson found it near impossible to stop himself from staring, Seanagh rarely wore a skirt, and the one she was wearing was black with a lace overlay.

“Well done for stating the obvious” Seanagh looked at Jenson briefly before going through to the other room to get her phone. He could tell from the look she gave him that what happened between them in India was still on her mind, it’s was still on Jenson’s as well. “Are we going then or what?”

“Yeah, and Seanagh-”

“Jenson I don’t want an apology, I’ve got press conference to get to” Jenson sighed, how could she have known that Jenson was going to apologise?

“Fine… I’ll take you” They walked mainly in silence, with the main noise being Seanagh’s recurring sneezes. Since the press conference was happening at the circuit, Jenson had to drive there. Again, more silence, it was beginning to drive Jenson nuts (no pun intended).

“Where is it?” Seanagh asked when Jenson had turned off the engine; he placed his hat on his head as he got out the car, waiting for Seanagh to do the same. She huffed as she got out the car and slammed the door shut, following Jenson who led the way to the press conference. Once they were a few hundred metres away from the building Seanagh quickened her pace and was in the building before Jenson had reached it.

“Bye” Jenson said to no one, walking away defeated with hands stuffed in his pockets.

*  *  *

Raven was sitting in the hospitality centre sipping on her third cup of coffee of the day, it felt odd being at a Grand Prix without Kimi, and that she was genuinely being considered (by the press) for the Lotus seat. The whole idea of her competing in F1 just felt bizarre, she had won this year’s F3 championship title (which happened to be her third). She was thinking about maybe a reserve driver role, but still. Her cup was half empty when she saw Jenson walk in. She waved him over, and he sat down with a heavy sigh.

“You okay?” She asked, looking the older Brit concerned.

“Not really…” Jenson took off his hat dropping it down on the table. “Seanagh and me…”

“Still not speaking?” Jenson shook his head “I figured, you’re race results show that. It seems she’s got quite the effect on you Button”

“Huh?”

“Well let’s see…” Raven put down her coffee cup, leaning back in her chair “You both fell out in India, and didn’t speak at all during the Abu Dhabi weekend. And you got two non-points finishes, Seanagh one the other hand…”

“What’s this got to do with anything?”

“You want me to be honest with you?” Jenson silently nodded “Well, you’ve both got a good relationship as team mates, and because of that you tend to get good race results because you’re sharing information. But that’s not happening, and you’re mind is _clearly_ not on the race track because of you and Seanagh falling out”

“I mean I don’t want to be mad at her, but I just can’t apologise because she just…”

“I know what she’s like Jenson, I’ve known her for years” Raven stood up, placing her now empty coffee cup in the nearest bin. “I’ll speak to her, see what I can do” She smiled at him, walking out of the building into the November sunshine, Raven had a plan already, she just needed to put it into action.

“Oh Jenson, can you meet me at the circuit building in twenty minutes?”

*  *  *

Seanagh walked out of the press conference with Paul, regretting going in the first place as her throat felt like sandpaper, all she wanted now was a cup of tea and ten more hours of sleep. The looked round in the glaring sunlight, not able to see a thing apart from something bright… and purple.

“Hiya!” It turned out to be Raven, you looked too happy for her own good.

“Hey Raven” Seanagh muttered, wrapping her arms round her waist to try and keep warm.

“Still not feeling well?” Seanagh shook her head “Well… I saw some place selling peach iced tea in the circuit building, come on” Raven dragged Seanagh towards the circuit building; she seemed to be rushing there for whatever reason. Seanagh walked slowly behind, her boots clicking against the tarred ground. “Hurry up! It’ll be all gone before we’ve got there at this rate! I thought F1 drivers were constantly you know… speedy” Raven was now dragging Seanagh towards the main circuit building, constantly looking at her watch. Once inside it was much cooler thanks to the air conditioning, causing Seanagh to zip up her jacket. She was lead down many corridors – Raven was clearly lost – and they ended up outside an empty conference room. “This clearly isn’t the right place; I’ll go and ask someone for directions. You wait here, oh and can I borrow your phone? The battery on mine’s died” Seanagh handed Raven her phone and she skipped off in the direction that they had come in. Raven seemed to be up to something, but Seanagh couldn’t figure out what.

*  *  *

Raven’s plan was working so far, she was constantly checking her watch, this plan had to be timed to perfection. She arrived at the main door and saw Jenson standing outside; he walked in when she waved to him, putting his sunglasses in the chest pocket of his McLaren shirt.

“Hey, what’s all this about then?” Jenson asked casually.

“Well, I was in here earlier and I lost my phone in one of the conference rooms, Seanagh’s busy and I need help finding it. I hope you don’t mind” Raven looked at Jenson sweetly, pleading her case to him.

“Yeah sure, where’s this conference room then?”

“This way” Raven lead Jenson through the many corridors to the conference room where Seanagh would hopefully be waiting. “Here we are” Raven smiled as she arrived where she had left Seanagh, who was looking at her confused. Raven pushed Seanagh inside and did the same with Jenson when he was within reach. She locked the doors with the key she found in one of the janitor rooms. She was met with both McLaren drivers banging on the locked doors, demanding to be let out. _F1 drivers can be such divas sometimes._ Raven rolled her eyes and folded her arms across her chest. “You’re not getting out until you’ve made up, and I don’t care how long it takes!”

*  *  *

“Raven!” Seanagh banged her fist against the door, it was no use, and she was stuck in the conference room with Jenson. And they weren’t getting out until Raven had heard them apologise. It was going to be a long afternoon. Jenson was sitting at the table, sipping on the tea he had with him.

“It’s no use” He said bluntly, looking out the window that over looked the pit lane. Seanagh sighed, sitting down at a faraway seat, it turned out there was peach iced tea, but it was in a vending machine and Seanagh had no money.

“She’s making us talk…”

“Mmm hmm” Jenson nodded, standing up to put his empty disposable cup in the bin. Jenson sat down again and the room was filled with silence (apart the occasional sigh for Jenson and the frequent sneezes form Seanagh).

“Ah fuck it, Jenson, why the hell are you mad at me?” Jenson looked shocked at the sudden communication from her, and he looked at his team mate for a few silent moments before replying.

“It was a bit of a shock really, I didn’t expect you and Seb to… you know”

“Well it happened, and I don’t know why you overreacted”

“I overreacted?!” Jenson raised his voice slightly in anger.

“Well let’s see, you kicked off by calling me stupid, then you stormed out of the media pen after the race in India and then you had a full on go at me in the middle of the fucking hotel afterwards!”

“I only did that because…”

“Because…?”

“Because I care about you, I’m your team mate and I’m meant to look out for you, I just feel like… that because you’re a rookie I needed to take you under my wing and guide you in the right way and… I took that too far and… and I’m sorry” Jenson paced up and down the room, waving his hands in the air as he spoke, he stopped and looked at her directly in the eyes and he said the word ‘sorry’. “I’m so sorry” He repeated. Seanagh sighed, looking at Jenson sympathetically.

“Jenson…” She started “I know I’m a rookie, and that I’m a lot younger than you, but I am twenty four, and believe it or not I am capable of looking after myself” Seanagh stood up and partially sat on the table, Jenson looked down and let out a small chuckle.

“I think I’m the stupid one sometimes”

“That’s not true” Seanagh shook her head, despite what she thought of Jenson she would never _ever_ insult him.

“So… you forgive me then?” Jenson asked hesitantly.

“Not completely, but you’re getting there” Their faces both broke into wide grins and for whatever reason they shook hands, just as they heard the sound of an unlocking door. The door opened and Raven was stood on the other side, holding Seanagh’s phone out towards her. “Your phone suddenly re-charged huh?” Seanagh chuckled, taking her phone out of Raven’s hand and headed out of the building with Jenson. She hadn’t completely forgiven him yet, but the past fifteen minutes had been a good start.

*  *  *

On Sunday both McLaren cars had finished in the points – Jenson in tenth and Seanagh in seventh. A points haul of seven points between them both looked abysmal from the outside, the team was happy – considering how terrible the second half of McLaren’s season was going. Race results meant everything with only one race left to go, and considering the drivers were now happily speaking to each other, it would certainly help.


	36. Contract Talk

_Tuesday 19 th November – McLaren Technology Centre_

Seanagh was beyond confused as to why she had been called into the factory so close to the last race of the season, surely it could have waited until after Brazil. She got out of her white MP4-12 C (she thought that turning up in her company car would make herself look good) and walked into the now familiar building, heading over to the reception desk.

“Good afternoon Miss Palmer, you’re a little early. Mr Dennis is expecting you in twenty minutes. You will have to wait until then”

“R-right, thank you” Seanagh had no idea that she was meant to be seeing the actual _Ron Dennis._ If she’d have known that then she would have worn her smarter uniform. She headed into the canteen area and ordered herself a banoffe smoothie and a blueberry muffin (she was _trying_ to be healthy) and sat down at one of the smaller tables. It was relatively quiet, a few people were either at the start or the end of their lunch break, so there were a few McLaren personnel around.

“Hey Seanagh!” She looked over her shoulder and saw a few mechanics huddled round a table waving at her. She picked up her stuff and went over to join them.

“Hey guys” She smiled politely at them all, every single one of them looked exhausted beyond belief.

“How’s that gearbox of yours holding up?” One of the mechanics – Gary – asked.

“Good, faired me well in Austin so… I’ll keep my fingers crossed for Sao Paulo” She laughed nervously, taking a sip of her smoothie. She spent the next twenty minutes sat with them, laughing and joking about general things – some work related, some not.

“So…” Connor, one of the people that worked in mission control, leaned back in his chair as he spoke. “How’s life working with Jenson Button?” Some of them laughed, others smirked to themselves. Seanagh wasn’t sure why.

“Good I guess, he’s a good guy to work with” A few of the mechanics laughed, looking at each other with wide grins.

“Is something…”

“No, no. Some people have got a theory that you and Jenson are… you know”

“Oh” It didn’t take Seanagh long to realise what they were on about “Oh no. We’re not… I’ve got a boyfriend you see and he’s definitely _not_ Jenson” Seanagh defended herself and finished what was left of her blueberry muffin, she still had half of her banoffe smoothie left. The group ended up talking about something else when that matter was settled, until Ron Dennis walked over, and talk suddenly turned to the race this weekend.

“Good afternoon everyone” He was stood behind Seanagh, hands clasped behind his back looking very…  Ron Dennis-ish.

“Good afternoon Mr Dennis” The entire table chorused.

“Miss Palmer?” Seanagh looked up and nodded. “If you’d like to come with me” Seanagh pushed back her chair and stood up.

“Bye guys” She waved to her colleagues, trying to sound as bright and positive as possible as inside, she was filled head to toe with nerves. They walked into a nearby lift, with Ron pressing the button for the top floor.

“Just to explain, you have a meeting with myself and Martin. Sorry for only being informing you now, it was preferred that you would find out upon your arrival”. Seanagh simply nodded, taking another sip of her smoothie, she felt as if she was on the verge of getting brain freeze. The lift doors opened and Ron stepped out first leading Seanagh in the direction of Martin’s office. All thoughts were running through her mind as to why she was having this meeting with Martin and Ron, she’d seen this Danish driver – Kevin Magnussen – looking around Seanagh’s garage at Austin, what if Seanagh was going to get kicked off the team? She knew that Ron wasn’t as keen as Martin to have Seanagh drive for McLaren; she felt she had proved herself by getting a podium and a win, and doing better than Jenson for the past three races, but what if it wasn’t enough? They turned the corner and Martin was shaking hands with none other than Kevin Magnussen. _That’s it, I’m done for…_

“Seanagh! Thanks for coming in at such short notice” Martin greeted Seanagh with a firm handshake, waving to Kevin as he left.

“Shall we proceed Martin?” Ron asked, Martin nodded and opened his office door.

“I don’t see why not, in you go Seanagh” Martin directed Seanagh into the mainly black office, there was quite a lot of black at the MTC. There was one large table in the middle of the medium sized office, which had one chair at one side and two on the other, with a few small stacks of A4 paper in the middle. Seanagh sat down in the singular chair, wringing her hands together nervously. Ron and Martin sat down in the other two chairs, looking at Seanagh as if she was meant to start the meeting.

“If you both don’t mind me asking, what is this meeting about?” Seanagh asked them both hesitantly.

“Well…” Martin leaned forward clasping his hands together. “Ron and myself would like to discuss your 2014 contract…”


	37. Race 19: Brazil 2013

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The final race of the 2013 Formula One season

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> apologies about the lack of updates this week (blame school work and an unexpected cold for that) hope you enjoy :)

“… And one of the other major talking points this weekend is drivers’ contracts for next year, many of the teams have confirmed their driver line ups, but teams including Caterham, Lotus and McLaren have yet to announce drivers. Now McLaren haven’t had the best second half of the season that they would like and it has been a pretty dismal season for them having only achieved one win and two other podium finishes. McLaren have said in an official statement that Jenson Button’s team mate will be announced on Sunday, but who will it be? A lot of talk has circulated around Danish driver Kevin Magnussen, or will Seanagh Palmer be given the other seat for next year? We will have to wait until Sunday to find out”

 *  *  *

 _Sunday 24 th November – Autódromo José Carlos Pace_ _, Sao Paulo_

Jenson walked into the McLaren tem building feeling slightly nervous. He’d been told to come to the team building half an hour before he was due at the garage, but he wasn’t told what for. He made his way through to the hospitality area and was met with loud cheers from his McLaren colleagues.

“What the…?” Jenson looked round the room bemused, what had he done to get all this?

“Congratulations Jenson!!” A large banner was revealed that read ‘Jenson Button’s 247th Grand Prix’ a smaller one beneath it read congratulations. The penny dropped eventually, this weekend cemented Jenson as the most experienced British F1 driver, surpassing 247 Grand Prix starts. That made him feel old, and he was only thirty three. Everyone came up to congratulate him, and Jenson couldn’t help but notice that Seanagh and Martin were concealing something at the back of the room. After ten minutes Jenson was standing with Martin by a small table, and Seanagh was approaching them with a small smirk on her face. Jenson cheered when he saw that Seanagh had presented him with a chocolate sponge cake, with 247 on top written in blue, orange and green smarties.

“I’ll go grab some plates” Martin left both drivers by themselves, Jenson began to awkwardly bounce on his toes.

“Well… I have to say congratulations, the most experienced British F1 driver, it’s quite a title”

“Yeah, makes me feel a little… old I guess” Jenson shrugged.

“Jenson. You’re thirty three, you are not old! You’re anything but” Seanagh rolled her eyes, crossing her arms with a small shrug. Jenson chuckled nervously, looking down at the cake in front of him.

“You’re too kind to me. Martin said he’s announcing my team mate for next season today” He looked at Seanagh solemnly, he hadn’t heard much from her about it, he was secretly hoping that they would be working together – but Jenson rarely got what he secretly hoped for.

“About that…” Seanagh began, looking down. “I’ve got some bad news Jense” 

“Oh no Seanagh…”

“You’re gonna have to put up with me for another year” Jenson had to wait a few moments for what Seanagh had said to actually register.

“Wait, so you’re…?” Jenson asked, Seanagh nodded with a wide smile on her face. Jenson grinned, picking her up and spinning her round and a tight hug. “Yes! That’s great news, I’m so, so happy for you” Jenson couldn’t resist kissing her cheek, he was delighted.

“Martin’s announcing it in roughly ten minutes, he’s got an interview with the BBC, so you _have_ to keep it quiet okay?”

“Okay” Jenson laughed, Martin had returned with three plates, forks and a cake knife.

“Told him the good news?” Martin asked, Seanagh nodded with a bright smile. “Well I’m speaking to the BBC in ten minutes, don’t say anything until then. I best be off, see you both at the circuit” Martin headed off with a slice of cake on his plate, smiling happily to himself.

“So, how long have you known?”

“Since Tuesday, that’s why I was called in. Turns out Ron Dennis wanted an announcement this weekend, and well… he didn’t really want to wait” Seanagh explained, trying to decide which part of her slice of cake to eat first.

“Well I’m glad; you’re the only person I really wanted… as my team mate I mean”

“Aw… getting a little soft are we Jenson?” Seanagh giggled, picking up a good forkful of cake. Ten minutes later the cake had been devoured and the whole of the international media had descended upon the McLaren team building.

“I don’t know what I’m more gutted about, the fact I’m starting in fourteenth or the fact that we can’t get out the building”

“Yeah… I had to get a grid penalty didn’t I? I’m starting in nineteenth now, stupid gearbox” Seanagh sighed, looking out her sunglasses – as was Jenson.

“Here’s to a good race then” Jenson extended his hand out towards Seanagh; she accepted it and shook it firmly. The drivers both looked at the doors and boldly walked out of the building, ignoring the camera flashes and shouts from the paparazzi. Race wise, they had nothing to lose, and giving their all for one last race sounded like a pretty good idea.

*  *  *

Raven tried to be inconspicuous as she left the Lotus team building, it would certainly look suspicious if she was seen leaving the building, especially with all of the rumours going round that it was between her, Nico Hulkenberg and Pastor Maldonado for the second Lotus seat. Raven was barely noticed by anyone as a sea of cameras had surrounded the McLaren team building; Raven couldn’t help but look to see what the commotion was about, part of it was explained when Seanagh and Jenson emerged from the crowd looking slightly dazed. They both laughed and headed in the direction of the pit lane, Raven decided to try and catch up with them. She ended up catching part of their conversation when she was right behind them.

“… I can’t believe it; you’d never have thought a driver announcement would cause so much fuss” Jenson sounded almost overjoyed.

“Yeah, the media want to speak to us for a change!”

“Yeah… just one more race then this season is over”

“You haven’t enjoyed this year?”

“Well Australia was good, that’s about it”

“Oh…” The pair continued walking, in silence this time, and Raven was walking behind them, trying to catch up. Raven was walking so fast that she tripped over the back of Seanagh’s shoe, nearly causing them both to fall over. “What the… Raven! I wasn’t expecting to see you here” Seanagh smiled at her brightly – she had every reason to, she was McLaren’s second driver for 2014 after all.

“Hey, you guys heading to the pit lane?”

“Yeah, want to walk with us?” Jenson offered, Raven hesitantly accepted, staying close to Seanagh’s left side. The walk to the pit lane was pretty silent – well as silent as F1 could be – and Raven dived into the Lotus garage as soon as she was there. There was no luck with a contract today, but Raven would just try again tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after, and the day after…

*  *  *

“That was fantastic Jenson, you got P4. What a way to finish off the season; let’s look forward to 2014”

“Yeah that was a good race to finish the season on, let’s just hope next year will be better” Jenson sighed over the team radio as he drove the car round the circuit for the in-lap. “Where did Seanagh finish?”

“Seanagh… just crossed the line, she got P6. If my calculations are correct we finish fifth in the constructors championship – 196 points” That was something Jenson didn’t want to hear, along with the rubbish year the team had, he hadn’t even contributed the majority of points, there was a twelve points difference between him and Seanagh in the Driver’s championship table, but a twelve point difference meant an awful lot. Jenson did the usual – drove the car into parc ferme, went to scrutineering get weighed and then went back to the garage. All Jenson wanted to do now was go home.

*  *  *

As the sun set over Sao Paulo the teams hurried to pack away everything to head back to their respective factories – whether that be in Britain, Italy or Switzerland. The 2013 Formula One season had drawn to a dramatic close; some drivers careers had ended, others had just started. Some teams and drivers had a good year, some didn’t. The V8 era had been sent off in style, with every team working as hard as they could to welcome in the new turbo charged V6 engines. The new season promised to bring in change to the ever-changing pinnacle of motorsport. Not one person knew what 2014 had in store when all the teams left Sao Paulo for another year.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this concludes the 2013 season, just a few more chapters to go before 2014!


	38. 2013 Autosport Awards

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while since I've updated (so sorry about that), I've been stuck with writers block, which is finally gone now (yay!). I'm going on holiday next week so I won't have another chapter up until then. Hope you all enjoy this one :)
> 
> NB - Any events changed have been done purely for fictional purposes. Also sorry about Seb's speech, it is a bit long but I did try to write the best bits. If anyone hasn't seen it you can see the full speech here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TJb9ra-7OU

_1 st December 2013 – North London_

It had been one week since the last race in Brazil, and somehow there were still a few more duties for Seanagh to do before she was allowed her three week holiday for Christmas – a holiday she wasn’t even getting to spend with Seb. That pretty much sucked. Tonight was the evening of the Autosport awards, Seanagh, Jenson, Sebastian and Raven had all received nominations – although Jenson for whatever reason had said he wasn’t coming. He was being the lucky person that was sunning it up in Monaco, or doing triathlon training, or… something.

“Seanagh! Where’s my bowtie?!”

“What are you asking me for?” Seanagh rolled her eyes as Seb walked in wearing a smart white shirt messily tucked into his black trousers.

“I thought that you would have seen it” He sighed, muttering something in German afterwards. Seanagh walked past him and went into the spare room where he was getting ready. The moment she walked in she saw a black bowtie that had been discarded on the floor. She picked it up and turned round, showing it to Seb. “Oh…” He looked at it for a moment, as Seanagh placed it round his neck and kissed him.

“You’re an idiot”

“Oh shut up!” He shut the door behind him, his cheeks flushing a red that was slowly travelling down his neck.

“Are you two quite finished?!” Raven was leaning against the wall with her arms crossed across her chest, wearing an identical white dressing gown to Seanagh.

“What, last time I check I have every right to kiss my boyfriend in my flat as you do Rae. And before you say that I didn’t have to do it in front of you, I was in his room and you could have turned away” Raven opened and closed her mouth like a goldfish before turning on her heel and going in the direction of the kitchen. All Seanagh had heard from Raven for the past week was the largest ‘I hate Sebastian Vettel’ speech that she had ever heard. Seanagh didn’t really care, she was happy, and as much as Seanagh and Raven were best friends, Raven would just have to put up with it. Seanagh rested her head against her bedroom door for a moment and exhaled deeply, she didn’t want tonight to be stressful, on top of all the pre-season work she was doing stress did not to be on her list of things to deal with.

She turned round and looked at the outfit she had laid out on the bed – a sky blue halter neck floor length chiffon dress with beaded detailing along the straps and waist, a silver pendant with a ring and two silver bracelets, and sitting on the floor was a pair of white six inch heels. She got dressed slowly, making sure to be very careful with the dress so she didn’t rip it. She slid on her heels and cured her hair before styling it in an elegant bun with a few loose curls framing her face along with her sweepy side fringe. After applying her make-up she picked up her matching white clutch bag and she was good to go – and in perfect timing as there was a knock on her bedroom door.

“Come in” She had a pretty good idea who it was, but just to be sure…

“Hey” Seb walked in with his hands in his pockets.

“Hi” She smiled at him, who looked like he knew something that Seanagh didn’t. “Everything okay Seb?”

“Yeah, there’s someone downstairs that wants to see you” Seb took Seanagh’s hand and laced their fingers together, leading her down towards the front door of the flat. Seb refused to say anything, other than grinning like a Cheshire cat when Seanagh’s mum came into view.

“Mum!” Seanagh gasped, dropping Seb’s hand and ran over to greet her mum and a tight hug.

“Long time no see” Seanagh’s mum laughed lightly into her ear, she could already feel tears forming in her eyes. “Let me have a look at you…” Seanagh took a couple of steps back and looked at her mum with a small smile. “… oh honey, you look beautiful” Seanagh looked up to see her mother’s warm smile, it was something that she had missed. “And you must be Sebastian, I finally get to meet you” Seanagh felt her palms begin to sweat. _Meet the parents… well one of them._

“It’s lovely to meet you Mrs Palmer, is Seanagh’s father here too or…?” That sentence sent Seanagh darting into the kitchen, dabbing her eyes with a piece of kitchen roll so her make-up wasn’t ruined.

“Um… he’s at home right now. Unfortunately he couldn’t make it down” Seanagh’s father had been involved in a car accident around the time of the Indian Grand Prix, he was okay but was still in the intensive care ward, she hadn’t heard anything about him for weeks. “Seanagh…” She looked up and saw her mum looking at her with a cautious gaze.

“I’ll be fine, we should be going soon. I don’t want to be late.” She walked into the living room; Seb was standing there looking worried. “When’s your car coming Seb?” They were going to the awards ceremony separately, neither of them wanted to start any rumours by arriving together. They were _trying_ to be inconspicuous.

“I don’t know, I…” Seb’s phone started ringing, he answered it immediately. “Hello?... Hi Christian. Okay, I’ll be down now” Seb put his phone back into his pocket. “He’s here. I’ll see you there then?” Seanagh nodded, allowing Seb to kiss her before he left, saying bye to Seanagh’s mum before he went out the door.

“Some people from McLaren arranged me a ticket. I hope that’s okay”

“Yeah… yeah that’s fine” Seanagh sighed as Raven entered the living room.

“Seb’s finally gone then?... Oh hello Mary” She smiled weakly at Seanagh’s mum, before looking down at her feet.

“Hello Raven, it’s nice to see you” An awkward silence fell over the three of them, before Raven left to go back to her room a few moments later. “She has a problem with Sebastian? He seems nice”

“Well Raven doesn’t think so” Seanagh replied with a laugh. The car to take Seanagh and her mum to the hotel where the award ceremony was being held arrived and Raven saw then out, they were greeted by Sam Michael.

“Good evening” He held the back passenger door open for them. “Traffic is good so we should be there a little earlier than we thought. But a lot of media people will want to speak to you and Mrs Palmer…” Seanagh barely registered the rest of what Sam said as the car pulled away from the flat.

*  *  * 

“So Seanagh, it hasn’t been too good a season for you at McLaren, you’ve been signed on for next year. Do you have any goals for next season?” Seanagh was doing yet another interview, and she was answering the same question for at least the fifth time.

“Well, I did get a podium and a win this year, but from what I’ve heard development for next year’s car is going really well so me personally I can only be positive about next season. I think for me I want to be winning races, just like everyone else. But with the new regulations next year it’s going to be hard to say where McLaren will be in terms of pace, but I guess we’ll have to wait until winter testing to see”

“You’ve also been nominated for Rookie of the year tonight, are you nervous?”

“Yeah I think so, as is everyone else. I’m up against some great guys who have all done really well this year so we’ll have to wait and see” The interviewer thanked her and went away to speak to someone else. Seanagh exhaled and headed toward the main hall where dinner was being served. Seanagh eventually found the table and sat down next to her mum.

“Press duties done?”

“Thankfully” She picked up her knife and fork and began to tuck into her dinner. She tried to not wolf it down too much as she was feeling near sick with nerves. It was only one award that she was up for, but it meant a lot. After a while the plates were cleared away and the lights were dimmed as Steve Rider took ti the stage to start the proceedings. She glanced to her left and saw Seb at the Red Bull table, aiming a reassuring smile in her direction. The evening started with Niki Lauda receiving the Gregor Grant award, which was met by a standing ovation and cheers from the entire room, and whose speech had everyone laughing with the whole Rio story. Up next was McLaren winning the John Bolister award for technical achievement, and Jonathan Neale was the one who made the acceptance speech. Rally driver of the year and racing car of the year soon followed. Seanagh felt hear heart in the throat as the next award was about to be presented, Rookie of the year…

*  *  *

_I’m mental, I’m meant to be in Monaco._ Those where the thoughts that were going through Jenson’s head as he managed to sneak into the room where the Autosport awards were. He was standing at the back of the room and he was party hidden by the darkness and his grey suit helped him blend in with everyone else, so it was easy for him to hang around for about ten minutes, when he knew he’d have to leave – or he’d get kicked out, it would be one of the two. Steve read out each of the nominees, and Jenson picked out one name in particular.

“…Seanagh Palmer, the first woman to compete in Formula 1 for over twenty years, winning at the Hungarian Grand Prix, and has become the most successful woman in Formula one after just one season…” Jenson clapped as loudly as he could for his team mate. He’d been in the same position that Seanagh was in when he was nominated for – and won – the rookie of the year award. Allan McNish was the one who was presenting the award.

“And the winner of Rookie of the year is… Seanagh Palmer” Jenson sighed with relief before he began cheering for Seanagh, along with the rest of the room. He knew that she deserved it. He picked her out as she rose from her seat and went into the stage, shaking hands with both Allan and Steve as she was presented her trophy.

“Seanagh congratulations, what a year you’ve had this year. And this must mean an awful lot to you”

“Yeah it really does…” Her voice sounded slightly shaky as she spoke. “But this year, it’s felt like a roller coaster right from the beginning and now at the end of the year; I’ve been on the podium twice and I’ve got a contract with McLaren for next year so yeah this award… it means so much”

“And this year you were paired alongside 2009 champion Jenson Button at McLaren, and you beat him in the drivers’ championship by twelve points, how exactly does that feel to beat a world champion?”

“Uh… It’s hard to explain really but Jenson… you know he’s been a great mentor to me over the past year, helping me get settled into the team and showing me the ropes as it were and I don’t think I could have asked for a better teammate, and I did do better than him this year but… I’ve got a feeling that 2014 will be a different story” Jenson felt himself smile, it meant a lot to hear Seanagh say that about him.

“You’re also the most successful woman in Formula 1, after just one year. Sitting very happily with a third place in China, a win in Hungary and 104 championship points under your belt…” The audience applauded and Seanagh face cracked into a wide smile. She did beat Jenson, but he had grown to see that she had deserved it – but he felt that 2014 was going to be different.

“Yeah, it feels pretty amazing to have achieved that in just one season, and I’ll be back at McLaren next year to try and build on that… Also I want to say that, the other guys that were nominated for this award; they’ve also had an amazing year. You know Jules won Marussia tenth in the constructors, Max finished every single race this year and Valtteri got third on the grid in Canada so they all deserve this as well”

“Very modest, and I think I speak for everyone here when I say that it’ll be a delight to see you on the grid for another year. Ladies and Gentlemen Rookie of the year Seanagh Palmer and Allan McNish” Jenson stood where he was for a few moments, he couldn’t help but feel proud. When he saw that Seanagh was off the stage Jenson silently slipped out the door that he entered. Seanagh would never know that he was there, and that was how he wanted it to be.

*  *  *

“The international Racing driver of the year is as probably as you all guessed: Sebastian Vettel” Seb grinned as he stood up and headed toward the stage. He shook hands with Sir Stirling Moss as he was given his trophy, it didn’t quite feel real, this was the fourth time in a row that he had won this award.

“Wow, here we are again at the end of another astonishing season and each year you come down the stairs and you do us the honour of coming here as world champion, your reputation is that little bit more enhanced your status in the sport is that more enhanced you see great champions like Stirling, Jackie Stewart, Emerson Fitipaldi, Niki Lauda and so on. Is it a humbling experience still for you?” Sebastian breathed in nervously before he spoke.

“Yeah absolutely I think tonight I was second walking down those stars behind another Sebastian but yeah it’s still very special for me definitely especially because the room is full of people knowing motorsport very well and to get the respect from all of you is fantastic and it’s been four years now I’ve been walking down those stairs I wouldn’t mind another couple of years…” Sebastian trailed of grinning, his eyes scanning the crowd; he continued to speak as he did so. This award meant so much to him, but there was someone else who meant just a little bit more.

“Stirling give us your verdict, how great a champion has this man become” Seb turned to Sir Stirling nervously, he was nervous as to how the legend in front of Seb would perceive him.

“I think it’s fantastic I spent fifteen years trying and I got nowhere near him and he’s already got four, it’s not very fair.” Stirling ended with a small laugh. “I think it’s absolutely staggering I mean what really amazes me as much as anything really is that if suddenly there’s a car brought out to slow them down when the car pulls in who’s first away? He’s straight there. Every time he seems to be on the ball, and I really respect you I think it’s incredible I really do”

“Thank you” Seb said quietly in awe, he never imagined that a Formula 1 legend such as Stirling would ever say something like that to him.

“On that slowing down lap we listen to you on the radio again and it’s really revealing the emotions that you show…”

“I think just to get one thing straight I think Stirling… maybe I to speak in a German language maybe I have ‘conquered’ more championships but he I think he definitely conquered and broke more women’s hearts” The crowd laughed, as did Stirling – which was a relief to Seb.  

“Yes, he’s had about four lifetime achievement awards as a result”

“For the women!” Seb joked as he rested his hand on the table.

“But that is important to you to still have fun in the sport; it’s difficult to have fun in Formula 1 these days”

“Yeah, I think the difference is obviously is that it’s much easier these days to get caught” Sebastian laughed nervously, thinking of Seanagh who was sitting in the audience. “I’m saying that with confidence because my girlfriend is not here tonight” He looked down with a false smirk as he breezed through the lie. He had to be inconspicuous about the whole thing. “I was told that all the bad things get cut out so it’s very private, between us” Steve continued on his previous point that he was on about before Sebastian had interrupted, the more serious stuff about how long Red Bull’s success had lasted, and how it seemed it would last for a little while longer. Seb went on about bad races, which reminded him of the weekend in Hungary. He was then asked about the infamous donuts he did at the latter end of the season, and how much the ‘donut bill’ had gone up to, of which Seb reminded that the bill was for not bringing the car back to parc ferme, not for doing the donuts. He was than asked about Hungary, and the events afterwards. Seb felt that he could inject a little humour into his speech.

“… I don’t know I got a big wake-up call in Hungary, I thought I did a decent job on the Saturday pole was very, very close between me and Lewis I think it was five of six hundredths and I was happy with my lap in the final attempt in Q3 but I knew that pole was obviously for grasp so I was not entirely I got back to my hotel room got changed and when I was in my underpants Helmut Marko opened the door…” A few giggles were heard from the crowd. “…and he said ‘Well you fucked that one right up’ I said ‘what exactly do you mean?’ and he said ‘yeah turn five I’ve seen it you lost more than five hundredths, if you only copied the lap from Q2 in turn five you would have pole’” A few more people laughed at Sebastian’s impression of Helmut. “You see what most people don’t think is that obviously this year has been a tricky year in some aspects… well you know. And people always think that Helmut and me… we’re like best mates and actually this example I’m giving you proves pretty much the opposite. I think he was never shy of giving me shit and probably never will be so he came to my room and gave me a massive bollocking for fucking it up and not getting pole position. I said to him ‘Helmut yeah turn five you’ve got a point’ obviously he spoke to the engineers and he was well informed…” _Apart from the fact my girlfriend is a McLaren driver_ Sebastian continued that part of the sentence in his head. “…it wasn’t an awful lap and ‘still yeah you should have got pole’. Next day we finished third which I think was a good recovery for the race we had getting stuck in traffic and so on. Anyways ‘So you see yesterday you get pole you win the race, today you didn’t get pole you fucked it up and today you saw you had a shit race” The crowd laughed even more, and it died down eventually.

Discussion then turned to next year to the new regulation changes and how Red Bull would deal with them. Seb spoke of how he would miss the V8s, and his only experience driving a V10, that certainly gave that audience a laugh. Seb ended his speech about how well Red Bull had done over the past five years, and that he hoped it would continue for many years to come.

“Despite the uncertainty of next year it would surprise no one in the room to see you heading down that staircase come the first Sunday of December next year. A fantastic champion, four times world champion now Sebastian Vettel and Sir Stirling Moss” The crowd erupted into applause as Seb left the stage and headed back to his seat, happily placing the trophy down on the table in front of him. Adrian congratulated Seb on the award but Christian looked at him sternly.

“I don’t think Helmut will be very happy with that impression Seb” He said with a small – a very small – chuckle. Seb didn’t really care; he looked over his shoulder at the McLaren table, catching a glimpse of his girlfriend. It was worth it.

*  *  *

When the ceremony was over there was an hour where everybody mingled, there were some interviews – but not many. So Seanagh stood mainly with people from McLaren as picture were taken of her and Jonathan Neale with their trophies for the McLaren website. Seanagh’s mum had left to find a phone – most likely to phone home to tell her brother Will the good news. She was standing alone for a few moments, after all the McLaren people had left to do whatever they needed to do, but she wasn’t alone for long as she felt someone place their hand on her shoulder.

“I think that congratulations are in order” Said a smiling Christian Horner, who was with an equally happy Adrian Newey and Sebastian Vettel.

“Oh… thank you Christian” She smiled back, holding her trophy with both hands. Christian nodded and left with Adrian, but leaving Seb.

“I figured that if I walked over with Adrian and Christian then it wouldn’t look so odd. But Christian was right, congratulations. You deserve it”

“Same could be said to you… Mister international racing driver of the year” Seb blushed, smiling down at his trophy.

“Thank you, what did you think of the speech?”

“Hmm” Seanagh hesitated “Well… I’m not sure how Helmut Marko will take it, and that girlfriend of yours…” They both laughed as Seanagh saw Jules and Max out of the corner of her eye.

“Well I must go, it looks like you have more people to speak to you” Seb looked over to Jules and Max, as if he were inviting them over. “Have a lovely evening…” He paused to lean into kiss her cheek. “…I’ll see you in the lobby in half an hour” Sebastian left and Jules and Max took his place, greeting Seanagh with smiles.

“Congratulations…” Max was the first to congratulate her with a hug.

“Yes, you deserved it. Well done” Jules added with a weak smile.

“Thanks guys… I’m so sorry…”

“Oh don’t be like that, you really did earn it… Hey Chloe!” Max waved over a slim blonde woman who Seanagh knew to be Max’s girlfriend.

“Yeah?” She asked him, Max handed her his phone.

“Can you take a picture, of the three of us?” Chloe nodded and the three of them arranged themselves so Seanagh was standing in the middle with Max and Jules on either side.

“We’re like the three musketeers… but F1 drivers” Jules remarked as he saw the photo.

“Yeah… the three rookies” Seanagh laughed, Max looked at her with a grin and began typing into his phone.

“There, a good one for twitter wouldn’t you say?” Max sowed them his phone screen, which showed a twitter update of the picture captioned ‘The Three Rookies!’

“Ha! I love it” Apart from Jenson, Seanagh felt that Max and Jules were her closest friends in F1. She got along well with them, and she was glad that Jules would be back for 2014, she was hoping that Max would be back as well. She looked at her watch, seeing that it was nearly midnight and that she was meant to be meeting Seb in the lobby. “I better be off home, McLaren will want me in early tomorrow I expect. It was great to see you both…” She paused, hugging them both briefly. “I’ll see you in Jerez!” She waved and made her way through the crowd of people towards the hotel lobby. She picked out Seb and her mum instantly waving at them before the three of them headed to the car (Raven was staying in a hotel before heading over to Switzerland to see Kimi). Seanagh had the most perfect night; she just wished that Jenson – and her dad – could have been there to see it.

*  *  *

His flight had just landed in Nice; Jenson looked odd compared to the other passengers in his Hugo Boss suit. Jenson had went straight through baggage reclaim as he had no hold luggage, he breezed through customs and headed straight for the airport car park, it was going to take just over half an hour for him to get back to Monaco. He got in the car and rested his head against the steering wheel of his McLaren 12C. Jenson had no idea why he ended up booking the plane ticket to London, just to see Seanagh get her award – it was luck that she got it – but Jenson would have regretted it if he wasn’t there. He sat up in his seat and clicked in his seat belt and drove towards home. He’d wake up in the morning and the last three or four hours would (hopefully) never have happened.


	39. Winter Break: Part 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back from Holiday, so here's the next chapter, let me know what you think :)

_13 th December – Southern England_

Seanagh hadn’t been driving long – just over an hour – when she felt that something wasn’t quite right with her car. She tried to put it into second gear, and her foot hit the floor when she pressed down on the clutch.

“No, no, no, no, no!!” She cried out as she pulled her car onto the pavement so she was off the road. She would have been in her trusty Mini, but that was in the garage getting a service and MOT, so Seanagh was on her way to Frome in her company car – her McLaren MP4-12C. She ran her hands over her face and sighed loudly. _It would happen to me, right in the middle of-_

“Excuse me miss?” Seanagh looked up and saw a man in a blue boiler suit walking towards her. She huffed and got out her car, pulling her jacket round her in an attempt to keep warm. “Are you alright?” The man asked her.

“Um… not really. I was driving and I tried to change gear and my foot hit the floor when I pressed down on the clutch” Seanagh explained the situation, pointing her thumb over her shoulder at her broken McLaren. The man rubbed his chin in thought, looking at the car.

“I work at a garage is just down the road, in that opening there. If you want we can have a look at it”

“Yeah… that would be great thank you”

“Right, you head along and go into the reception. I’ll get the car along and see what’s wrong with it” Seanagh got her handbag out of the car and headed along to the opening where she had been told to go to, and she was relieved to find a 24 hour garage. There was a small portakabin to her right with a reception sign over the door. She knocked on it as she walked in and saw another man in a boiler suit sitting at a desk drinking a mug of what smelled like coffee. He looked up from his computer screen and looked at Seanagh blankly.

“Can I help you love?” He asked in an accent that was more cockney than West Country.

“My car has broken down, one of your guys is pushing it in the garage to have a look at it” Seanagh replied with the occasional stammer.

“What happened with it?”

“I tried to change gear and the clutch pedal just hit the floor” She explained again.

“Right… is that your one there. The fancy sports car?” He peered out of a window and saw Seanagh’s White McLaren getting pushed in by the mechanic.

“Yeah, that’s it” Seanagh sighed, it would be her company car that broke down. He looked at the car and shrugged his shoulders before heading out to help the other mechanic.

“Hey Steve! Be careful with that will you!”

“S-sorry boss” The mechanic – Steve – replied, wiping his brow with the back of his hand. Seanagh sat down at one of the chairs in the reception cabin, what amused Seanagh the most was a poster advertising tyres that had a picture of David Coulthard on it. Not to mention she was delighted at the fact she hadn’t been recognised, she could do with not being an F1 driver with a broken down car. Minutes later the boss – whose name turned out to be Andy – walked into the cabin looking as if he was going to deliver bad news.

“Where exactly were you going? You know before your car broke down”

“I was heading over to Frome… in Somerset. One of my friends invited me over” The truth of the situation was that Jenson had invited Seanagh over for a couple of days while he was in town visiting his family, this was after her heard an entire over-the-phone argument between Seanagh and Sebastian. But no-one needed to know that.

“Well you might need your friend to pick you up from here, from just having a look your clutch had completely gone and it’ll need replaced. Your car is a McLaren right?” Seanagh nodded “Well I have to order the part from Woking, providing they’re still dispatching parts this close to Christmas, but I’ll phone them up to double check. I’ll need some contact details, just your name and phone number will do” Seanagh read out her phone number and told the garage owner her name. “Right Miss Palmer, I can call them now but I won’t hear back to tomorrow, you can step outside to make your phone call if you wish” Seanagh did as she was suggested and went out into the cold December air, calling Jenson in the hope that he was still awake.

“Hello?” He sounded groggy, _he’s gonna hate me for this._

“Hey Jense, I’m about half way over and my car’s broken down…” She bit her bottom lip waiting for him to respond.

“Right… where are you?”

“At a 24 hour garage in Andover”

“Yeah I think I know the one, I’ll be about an hour. I’ll give you a lift over”

“Okay… thanks Jenson” He hung up and Seanagh went back inside, Andy looked at her as if he recognised her from somewhere, the penny must have been dropping. “My mate will be here in an hour, can I wait for him here?” She asked him hopefully.

“Yeah of course, there’s a coffee machine in the corner, feel free to help yourself”

“Thanks” She headed over to the bright red coffee machine and pressed various buttons until she had a hot mocha in her hands. She cautiously carried it over to where she was sitting before. “I have to say I’m glad I found this place, I’d have been lost if I didn’t”

“Well… Steve heard a funny noise before and went to see what it was, turned out it was your car” He chuckled lightly, looking out one of the other windows that had a view of the garage. “That’s a nice car you’ve got, expensive was it?”

“Um…” _Well it’s my company car, I work for the people that make them… sort of._ That didn’t sound quite right. “Yeah…” She replied breathlessly, sipping on her coffee. The small talk continued with both mechanics darting in and out of the reception until Jenson arrived, not that they knew it was Jenson until he saw him get out of his car. That was when the penny dropped.

“Hey Seanagh” He smiled at her, greeting his friend in a one armed hug. “Car problems huh?” Both mechanics looked at Seanagh and Jenson stunned – it seemed that Jenson was the more recognisable one. Jenson stepped towards them and extended his hand. “Is everything alright with my friend’s car?”

“Clutch problem, not sure when it can get fixed. Depends if I can get the part off McLaren tomorrow” Andy responded and Jenson just nodded.

“Right, I’ll get my stuff out of my car and I’ll be good to go” Seanagh went out into the cold again and retrieved her suitcase form the back of the car before handing her keys to one of the mechanics.

“Right Miss Palmer, I’ll be in touch tomorrow about your car. Have a safe journey” Seanagh shook hands with both mechanics, thanking them for hopefully being able to fix her car. She hopped into Jenson’s not broken car and he drove away from the garage.

“Aren’t you lucky, you break down less than two hundred metres away from an open all hour’s garage”

“I wouldn’t call myself lucky… that was my 12C” Seanagh whined, resting her head against the window. “I’m sorry for getting you out of bed, especially at this time of night” It had just past eleven o’clock.

“It’s no problem, and how else were you meant to get to Frome” Jenson looked at her briefly before focusing his attention back on the road. They stayed in silence for a few minutes, the car radio playing quietly in the background, and Jenson singing along even quieter. “So how have you been? Besides the broken car and falling out with you-know-who”

“Voldemort?” They both laughed “Not so bad, been in the flat by myself since Rae’s in Switzerland with Kimi. Oh and I got Rookie of the year at the Autosport awards”

“Yeah I heard… congratulations. Sorry I couldn’t be there” Jenson sighed.

“It’s not your fault, I wasn’t expecting you to be there” They both fell into silence again, which was leaning on the awkward side of comfortable. The journey was well over an hour due to some road works, so it was a relief for both of them when they arrived in Frome – which was lit up with Christmas lights. They drove through several streets until Jenson stopped the car outside a two story semi-detached house.

“Here we are” Jenson got out the car and Seanagh followed, heading to the boot to grab her suitcase, Jenson however got there first. From the outside the house looked just like any other – apart from one of the lights being on. “What’s my mum doing up?” It was half past midnight by this point, and Jenson and Seanagh entered the house, and they were both greeted by who Seanagh assumed was Jenson’s mum.

“Everything alright?” She asked.

“Yeah, everything’s fine mum” He smiled reassuringly at her; Seanagh could easily see the resemblance between them.

“Glad to hear it… You’re Seanagh aren’t you? Sorry to hear about your car”

“Oh it’s fine really um…”

“Just call me Simone, come through to the kitchen. I’ll make you a hot chocolate… and Jenson?” He was already in the kitchen, wolfing down a digestive biscuit. “Take Seanagh’s stuff up to her room” He muffled a sort of ‘Yes mum’ as he did as he was told. “That boy of mine, he says he’s thirty three but…”

“Well, boys tend to do what their mothers tell them. I’ve got a younger brother myself, and he’s exactly the same”

“Oh really, Jenson never said” Simone remarked as she poured water into the kettle and switched it on.

“Yeah, he’s turning 20 next July, kinda crazy really”

“Oh I know, it only feels like Jenson had turned five the other day. Now look at him” Simone smiled to herself as the kettle boiled, and she began to make Seanagh’s hot chocolate.

“You must be very proud, not every F1 driver becomes world champion”

“Oh yes, the whole family is very proud of him” Seanagh’s hot chocolate was placed in front of her, which she happily accepted. “So how long have you known Jenson then?”

“Since January this year, that was when I first started working with McLaren”

“I see. He’s very fond of you, he likes having you around”

“Jenson does?” Seanagh asked surprised.

“Yeah he-”

“That’s Seanagh’s stuff in her room” Jenson barged in and sat down at the table, resuming eating the stack of biscuits he had piled in front of him. His mum and Seanagh both shared the same knowing look before giggling slightly.

“Well I’m going back to bed, I’ll see you both in the morning” They both wished Jenson’s mum goodnight and they resumed their silence from the car journey.

“I’ll show you to your room” Jenson muffled as he was still chewing on his final biscuit and he had crumbs at the corners of his mouth. Seanagh picked up her mug from the table and followed Jenson up the set of stairs to the second floor. “This is your on here, my mum’s is at the end of the hall and I’m halfway down”

“Okay… thanks Jenson, for everything”

“No problem” He smiled brightly “I’ll see you in the morning” Jenson turned and went into his room and Seanagh went into hers. Her room had a double bed facing a wood wardrobe with her suitcase on a chair in the corner. She changed into her pyjamas and quickly got into bed – which had a hot water bottle in it, which Seanagh greatly appreciated – and she slowly drifted off into a peaceful night’s sleep.

*  *  * 

Jenson woke early the next morning, getting dressed in the previous night’s clothes and headed downstairs to the kitchen to make himself a cup of tea.

“Morning mum” He headed over to the cupboard and took out three large mugs “Coffee?”

“Please, what do you want for breakfast?” Jenson pondered over his answer as he retrieved two teabags and the coffee pot from the shelves in the small pantry. He shrugged his shoulders as he began to make the hot drinks. He made one tea and one coffee – which he gave to his mum – and began looking around for a post-it note. He eventually found one and began scribbling a note on it. He took the tea – Seanagh’s tea – and headed upstairs to give it to her. He slipped in and out the room as quietly as he could, gently placing the mug of tea on the bedside table as Seanagh was still asleep (well she looked asleep, she was facing the wall) and he was back in the kitchen, just in time as it seemed.

“Jenson, can you…?”His mum was pointing at the stove, where she was cooking pancakes, Jenson was always asked to flip them as him mum could never quite get the hang of it. He did so and smiled when the pancake landed safely on the frying pan. They both continued to make breakfast until they heard movement from upstairs. “Seanagh must be up” Jenson nodded “She seems like a lovely girl, why did you invite her over again?”

“Boyfriend troubles, I thought she might have liked being away from London for a few days”

“Oh, and have you met this boyfriend then?” _Yeah… I race against him every other Sunday!!_

“Yeah just the once though. He’s nice, they’re very happy together” Jenson began setting the table when Seanagh walked in with an empty mug. “Morning” He smiled brightly at her. “Breakfast is almost done, pancakes sound good to you?”

“Yeah… fine thank you” From looking at her Seanagh’s eyes were red and puffy, it didn’t take a genius to figure out why, what Seb had done this time…

“I’ll make you a cup of tea, what would you like?”

“Um… English breakfast if it’s not too much trouble”

“Yes that’s fine…” With his mum’s back turned Jenson pulled Seanagh into a quick hug, holding her close as she broke out into faint sobs. It was clear the whole Seb thing was taking its toll on her. She reluctantly pulled herself out of his grasp and sat down at the breakfast table. It was clear that she wasn’t going to cheer up soon, no matter how hard Jenson tried.

*  *  * 

_Switzerland_

Raven had been in Switzerland for about two weeks, the further away she could get from home the better, plus she wanted to make sure that Kimi was okay. She was in the kitchen making a late breakfast, and Kimi came shuffling in looking for food.

“Morning” He mumbled, his eyes peering round his kitchen.

“I’m making breakfast, you want anything?”

“I’ll have some coffee and some of this with some honey” He reached up to one of the shelves to grab a box of muesli, wincing slightly as he placed the box on the table. Kimi was still recovering from his back surgery, but he was planning on travelling to Italy so visit the Ferrari factory. “Have you heard from Lotus yet?” The question took Raven by surprise.

“No… not yet” Raven replied as she began making Kimi’s coffee.

“You could go over to Enstone, when I’m in Maranello” Raven contemplated the remark, she did want that Lotus seat, she didn’t quite remember wanting anything as bad before. But there was the fact that it was her boyfriend’s ex-team. Awkward much. “I won’t mind, I couldn’t give a shit what team you drove for” Others would have found that comment insulting, but Raven knew Kimi meant it in his own way. “Go, call them. I’ll do breakfast” Raven was directed into the living room where her laptop was. She picked up her mobile and called her manager.

“Hey, sorry to bother you but I was wondering if you’d made any progress with the Lotus seat?”

“Not yet… Maldonado’s people are being very persistent. It might help your case if you come to the factory yourself” That was two people pushing her to go to Enstone, and if her manager was right then…

“Right, how about tomorrow?” Raven asked, switching on her laptop so she could find a flight that would take her to London.

“Fantastic I’ll let them know and I’ll see you then” Raven sighed as her manager hung up, she placed her phone down on the table and booked a seat on an early morning flight into London. She felt a small smile creep across her face as she joined Kimi for breakfast, she would just allow her fate to be decided the next day.

*  *  * 

_15 th December – Enstone, Lotus F1 Team Factory_

Raven walked into the Lotus factory feeling very positive, her manager had managed to secure a sponsorship deal, which would help her with getting the Lotus seat. She saw Eric Boullier and allowed her manager to do the talking; they then headed up to one of the private meeting rooms. _Here goes nothing…_


	40. Winter Break: Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some time in Somerset, and the drivers bring in 2014

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, I'm really sorry for the month and a bit gap between chapters, I've been doing my exams and they had to take priority, but I didn't think it would take be this long to get back into writing again. Hopefully updates should be more regular, and I will get chapters to you all as soon as I can.
> 
> So I hope you all enjoy this one, and please let me know what you think, I love reading your feedback.

_16 th December – Frome_

**_Could Formula One see another woman driver on the grid for 2014?_ **

_McLaren took the F1 world by surprise when they announced this time last year that multiple Formula 3 champion Seanagh Palmer was replacing Lewis Hamilton at the Woking based team. One year on and McLaren have gone through one of their worst seasons in the team’s history with one win and two other podium finishes – with Palmer outperforming team mate Jenson Button._

_Palmer’s success has shown critics that it is possible for women to be successful in a very much male dominated sport. This had sparked Raven Sanders – current F3 champion – to try and to do the same and make a move into the sport, filling in the spare seat at Lotus alongside Romain Grosjean._

_Lotus have been very coy about their second driver for 2014 – either because they are undecided to pick either Sanders or now ex-Williams driver Pastor Maldonado or because their spot on the 2014 grid has been questioned due to their current financial troubles which have been at the forefront of conversation ever since Kimi Raikkonen made public about Lotus failing to pay his 2013 wages. It is likely that we will have to wait until January for Lotus to make their second driver announcement, safe to say Lotus have many things to deal with before that announcement in January._

 

Seanagh was sat in a coffee shop reading an article on her phone waiting for Jenson to come back with drinks. She was still feeling pretty down about the whole Seb thing, but being away from London was helping a little.

“Here we go, one caramel hot chocolate” Jenson carefully placed the mug in front of her, which was piled high with whipped cream and a sprinkling of cinnamon.

“Thanks” She was already halfway through her raspberry and white chocolate muffin when Jenson had returned.

“Everything alright?” He was being very sweet around her, constantly making sure that she was okay – it probably had something to do with Seanagh crying in Jenson’s mum’s kitchen. Seanagh nodded, and continued reading the article on her phone.

 

_Many people were surprised when McLaren made the announcement that both Palmer and Button were being retained for 2014 – although their futures at the team are beginning to be placed in doubt with rumours circulating that former team principal Ron Dennis is planning on returning to run the team to set McLaren in the right direction after their terrible 2013 season._

_With Honda returning to the grid as McLaren’s engine supplier in 2015 it’s possible that Dennis wants the strongest driver line-up possible, and if either Palmer or Button fail to deliver next year, it could be likely that one or both of them could be shown the door, with the possibility of current Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso taking their place._

 

Considering the mood that she was in, reading media speculation wasn’t the best thing to be doing at this point. But curiosity would always win in some occasions. Saying that – Seanagh loved being at McLaren, and she hated the thought of being sacked, but what if she wasn’t good enough? What if she just got lucky in Hungary and she was never meant to be in F1? What if…

“Seanagh… are you okay?” Jenson asked her concerned as she now had tears blurring her vision. She nodded and quickly headed for the toilet, washing her face with cold water. She took a few minutes to look at her reflection: she had dark circles under her eyes due to lack of sleep, her eyes were slightly bloodshot and her hair fell limp across her shoulders. The look on her face was a look of defeat; she looked crushed and completely disheartened.

 But there was something nagging in Seanagh’s mind telling her different.

The woman in the mirror _was_ the most successful woman in F1, she _was_ a race winner and podium finisher, she _had_ done better than a former world champion in the season, she was determined to do better, to prove everyone wrong and that she _could_ compete in the sport alongside the men – despite many telling her that it was a stupid dream that she was grow out of, just another childhood fantasy. But it wasn’t a fantasy, she was a Formula 1 driver with McLaren – one of the most successful teams in the sport. She would prove them wrong, she would.

*  *  *

Jenson was concerned when Seanagh had bolted off crying, endless thoughts were running through his head; could it have been Seb? She came back in a few minutes later and she sat down and put her phone in her back without even glancing at it. He looked at her, wanting but not wanting to ask about why she was upset.

“Stupid article, it’s nothing”

“Can I see?” Seanagh handed him her phone and he read the same article, it just seemed to be another media dig, but it was clear why it had upset her. “Don’t take any notice of it; you are so much more than that. I’d like to see them try and win a Grand Prix in that car we had. Trust me, you’re worth more to McLaren than any of those journalists are put together” Seanagh smiled a little. “And let’s be honest, you outperformed me: a world champion! That’s amazing, so don’t beat yourself up like this, you’re worth way more than what you think you are” Her smile broke out into a grin, which was the first time he had seen Seanagh properly smile for days.

“Thanks Jenson” He had meant what he said; Seanagh was a great team mate, and a fantastic driver, in his mind she deserved that 2014 seat more than he did. They continued sipping on their hot drinks, mainly complaining about the weather, with Jenson adding how nice it would be in Monaco.

“You’d love it though; when it’s not a GP weekend there it’s so different, it’s good for training as well”

“Nah, I’ll keep the rain and the cold thanks, I’m a proud Brit, I just love it here” They were about to leave when they were approached by a teenage girl and her mum, the girl was decked from head to toe in McLaren merchandise.

“I’m sorry to bother you both, my daughter was wondering if she could get a quick picture and an autograph?” Jenson and Seanagh both smiled at each other and were more than happy to do so.

“Of course! What’s your name?” Seanagh was handed a photo of her in her McLaren overalls, she dug out a black sharpie pen from the bottom of her bag.

“Lucy, I was at the race in Hungary with my dad. It was great to see you win” Jenson looked on; Seanagh just looked so overcome that she could barely speak.

“Thank you, that really means an awful lot” Seanagh stood next to her for the photo, and they both looked at Jenson.

“You want me in the picture?” The girl nodded and Jenson stood on her other side. A few minutes later him and Seanagh both left the coffee shop, knowing that they had just made one girl’s day. “See, I told you, you mean more to people than what you think you do”

“I just can’t believe it…” Seanagh sighed. “Well, where are we going then?”

“Back to the high street, I need your help”

“With what… please tell me I’m not helping you buy another suit this time” Jenson chuckled, remember when he had taken Seanagh to help him pick out a suit for the Rush premier.

“No… I need to get some presents for my sisters. I’m stuck on what to get them”

“Fair enough, do you have any-”

“Jenson!!”

“Oh no…” He muttered under his breath, Seanagh looked at him slightly bemused.

“Hey girls” Jenson smiled greeting his three sisters with hugs and kisses on the cheek. “Seanagh these are my sisters Samantha, Tanya and Natasha. Girls this is Seanagh Palmer my McLaren team mate” He introduced his sisters to Seanagh and vice versa.

“Oh we know who she is, you’ve been keeping her from us” Tanya smiled at Seanagh warmly, who looked to try her best to replicate the smile.

“Anyway we best be off we’re going to mum’s, see you later Jenson, nice to meet you Seanagh” Samantha led her two siblings away, leaving both McLaren drivers in the middle of the street looking equally stunned.

“Sisters… you didn’t say you had three”

“Yeah, small detail really, easily missed” They looked at each other and laughed.

“Come on… you need to get presents for them” Seanagh giggled dragging Jenson into the nearest shop.

 

_17 th December _

“It was lovely to have you Seanagh, feel free to pop round if you’re in the area” Seanagh was making her way to Jenson’s car and his Mum was seeing them off.

“Thank you so much for having me at such short notice; it was very kind of you”

“Oh it’s no problem; I’ve been wanted to meet the person that Jenson doesn’t stop talking about”

“Mum…” Jenson looked at his mum sternly, placing Seanagh suitcase in the boot of his car. A very noticeable flush of colour was seen in his cheeks.

“Ah well, I meet even see you at a couple of races next year so we’ll have to see”

“I’ll hope to see you then; thanks again for having me” Seanagh got into Jenson’s car as he sat in the driver’s seat.

“Well have a nice Christmas and New Year, see you soon”

“Bye!” Seanagh waved through the open window as Jenson drove off toward Andover where Seanagh was picking up her car from the open all hour’s garage where it would hopefully be fixed. When they arrived at the garage in Andover they were greeted with the sight of Seanagh’s 12C sitting by the reception cabin being polished by one of the mechanics. “Oh my…”

“I think they know who you are now” Jenson laughed as he turned off the ignition.

“I didn’t want any special treatment!” She sighed, getting out of Jenson’s car and headed towards her own. The mechanic rushed over to greet her.

“Miss Palmer, such a pleasure to meet you! I noticed a couple of scratches in the paintwork and I wanted to sort them for you”

“Oh… well thank you that’s very kind”

“The boss is inside, I’ll stay by the car” Seanagh nodded and smiled in thanks as she entered the reception cabin, where she found Jenson standing inside.

“Good afternoon” She smiled warmly at the garage owner. “I hope you have good news for me”

“Yeah, McLaren got me the part and my lads installed it. It’s good as mew” Seanagh sighed with relief, she had been worried about her car for the past few days.

“Thank you so much, I understand it was short notice but…”

“It’s no problem, a bit of business before Christmas is always good. Now here are your keys and I’ll take you to your car” Clutching her car keys in her right hand she was lead out to her car – which was still being fussed over.  “Here you are, have a safe journey home” Seanagh was left alone with her car.

“Here’s your suitcase” Jenson was now standing by her side with his hands in his pockets. “Well, I’ll see you in January”

“Yeah, have a good Christmas and New Year. Hawaii you’re going to isn’t it?”

“Yeah, enjoy ‘Bonnie Scotland’” Jenson laughed as he turned to walk away.

“See ya JB!” Seanagh smiled getting into her car; the sound of the purring engine was music to her ears. She clicked in her seatbelt and drove away back to London.

*  *  *

Jenson had only just pulled out of the garage when he noticed something on the passenger seat that shouldn’t have been there – a black handbag. He pulled over and opened it, finding a black purse, he examined the contents and found Seanagh’s driving licence, meaning that the bag must have been hers. _She’d lose her head if it wasn’t screwed on…_   

Jenson shook his head as he turned his car round heading for London.

*  *  *

Home. A smile crept onto Seanagh’s face as she was back in her London flat; she had needed the few days away, but it felt good to be back. She was going to text Jenson that she had made it back safely when she couldn’t find her phone, or her handbag. All manner of thought ran through her head when someone knocked on her front door, she rushed to it and was relieved at the sight she saw.

“Someone left this in my car”

“You… thanks JB”

“It’s no problem… you see black isn’t really my colour” Jenson joked as both drivers laughed.

“I don’t think so, come in I’ll make you a cuppa”

“Actually… I need to get back to Frome, thanks though”

“It’s no problem, see you Jense”

“Bye, have a good holiday”

 

_Switzerland_

“I mean I can’t believe it. I… just why Kimi?” Kimi had been listening to Seb whine for the past hour or so, he knew that Seb had his moments but Kimi never knew that Seb could be _this_ annoying.

“I don’t know Seb…” Kimi took another sip of his water and set it back down on the table. Seb started off on another rant, and Kimi decided to tune out of the German’s problems for at least five minutes. What he did hear was the opening and shutting of his front door.

“Kimi! I’m back, I’ve picked up a few things and… what’s he doing here?!” Kimi rolled his eyes and stood up, walking over to Raven and greeting her with a kiss on the cheek.

“Can I not have friends over?... Come on Seb?”

“Where are we going?” Sebastian stood up, awkwardly placing his hands inside his pockets.

“Your place”

*  *  *

Seb was confused; Kimi was acting strange – even by his standards. Although he was getting two beers out of the fridge, which was normal.

“What’s this for, why do we need to be here?” Seb asked the Finn, he still didn’t know why they were now at Seb’s house. Kimi just shrugged and handed Seb a chilled beer. “Kimi! Will you please tell me what’s going on?”

“Stop whining Seb” Kimi remarked from the other side of the room, Seb crossed his arms in an attempt to defend himself.

“I’m not whining”

“For the past hour that’s all you’ve been doing!” Seb stayed quiet as Kimi went to get something from his car, he returned with a small dark box and he placed it in front of Seb. “For you”

“But you already gave me my Christmas pr-”

“It’s not from me, read the label” Seb looked at the box, which was navy with a red tag and a gold ribbon tied round it. He turned the tag over and read what was written on it.

_To Seb, Merry Christmas from Seanagh xx_

He started at the gift blankly for at least a few minutes reading the writing over and over again, and all he could think of was the stupid argument they had a few days ago. Seb went upstairs to his room and pulled out the gift he was going to give Seanagh for her Christmas.

“Hey, Earth to Vettel” Turning round he saw Kimi leaning against the doorway, still sipping on his beer. “What did you two even fall out about anyway?” Kimi asked.

“I… I can’t remember” Still looking at the small box in his hands he had an idea. “Hey, do you know how much flights are from Germany to the UK?”

 

_31 st December – Scotland_

“Mum! We needed to go ten minutes ago, so with all due respect, hurry up!” Seanagh was stood by her parent’s car outside the family home waiting for the rest of her family to get in the car. She had spent Christmas with them and they were heading up to Edinburgh like they did every year to bring in the New Year. Seanagh’s brother Will bounded out of the door, greeting his older sister with a hug, he was still drooling over the Tag Heuer watch she got him for Christmas.

“Hey, Mum says that if you don’t stop shouting then you’re gonna get a fine”

“I didn’t say that Will, what’s that thing when you have to drive through the pit lane but you’re not allowed to do a pit stop?”

“Drive through penalty” Seanagh, Will and their Dad all replied simultaneously. Seanagh’s Mum was still learning about all the F1 terminology, the motorsport bug that had engulfed the family seemed to have missed her.

“That’s it…” She smiled as Seanagh’s Dad walked past her on crutches; he had been discharged from hospital a week ago and was desperate to get out of the house. “You two get in the car, your father and me won’t be a minute” Seanagh and Will – like they had done when they were children – fought over which side of the car they were going to sit on.

“I’ll toss you for it” Will rummaged in his pockets trying to find a coin “Heads or tails?”

“Tails” He tossed the coin and grinned when it landed heads side up.

“Honestly, two grown adults fighting over a car seat” Their Mum shook her head disapprovingly.

“Some things never change” Seanagh’s Dad added as he got into the front passengers seat. Seanagh and Will exchanged a look before laughing.

*  *  *

They arrived in Edinburgh at half past ten, the city lit up the night sky with a sea of bright lights.

“Come on, I’ll race you to the Hot Dog stand!” Will shouted as he jogged past his older sister.

“You really want to race an F1 driver?!” She laughed, catching up and jogging past him and joined the back of a long queue. Will joined her a few seconds later, only slightly out of breath.

“I didn’t think about that one…” They stood in the queue for ten minutes before they got their hot dogs, which they smothered in ketchup and mustard.

“I haven’t had one of these since this time last year” Seanagh chewed on another mouthful.

“You’re kidding!”

“No, my physio is very picky about what I eat, so no pizza’s, burgers or hot dogs” Seanagh counted what Vanessa called “forbidden foods” to her surprised looking brother.

“How do you live without pizza?! It’s the food of the gods!” Pizza was something that Will lived on, he could barely imagine life without it.

“Well I drive fast cars for a living, which is awesome!”

“Do you think it’s a bit late for me to be an F1 driver?” Seanagh and Will both laughed as they joined their parents to bring in the New Year.

*  *  *

Ten minutes to twelve. Seb ran off the train and followed the large crowd of people in the hope that he would be able to find her before midnight. Otherwise his last minute flight in from Germany would have been for nothing. He pushed and shoved until he was in the main street where the crowd was gathering, looking at his watch he saw that he only had seven minutes. Seb looked around for a sign of his girlfriend, but in the mass of people it was going to be impossible to find her.

“Yeah well it’s not a problem, see you soon!” He looked over his shoulder and blinked a few times to be sure he wasn’t seeing things. Seanagh was speaking to someone – most likely a McLaren fan judging by their bright red cap. She waved and turned away, heading in the opposite direction. He followed her, thinking just how he was going to reveal himself. Unable to speak he tapped her left shoulder and waited for her to turn round. “Sebastian…” She looked up at him looking confused.

“Um… hi”

“What are you doing here; I thought you were in Germany”

“Well I was but… I have something for you” Seb carefully pulled the small parcel out of his coat pocket and handed it to Seanagh. “Late Christmas present, or an early birthday present I guess” Seb shrugged as he put his hands in his pockets. Seanagh began delicately unwrapping her present as Seb looked at his watch – the watch Seanagh had gotten him for Christmas – showing three minutes to midnight.

“Seb…” He looked up nervously, and was glad to see Seanagh smiling, even if it was a small smile.

“It’s probably a little bit cliché but…”

“Well, it’s a very beautiful cliché” They looked at each other for a moment as the crowd began counting down. “Come on…” She took hold of Seb’s hand and led him further into the crowd.

Ten

Nine

Eight

Seven

Six

Five

Four

Three

Two

One

The crowd erupted into cheers as everyone started to sing Auld Lang Syne.

“Seanagh hang on a minute…” The pair halted to a stop as Seanagh turned round to look at Seb. “I’m sorry for us falling out, it was quite stupid really. I hope you can forgive me”

“It’s okay” She smiled, going up on her tiptoes giving Seb a quick kiss. “Happy New Year Seb”

 

_Switzerland_

“Found some champagne” Kimi walked back onto the balcony holding a bottle of champagne and two glasses. He set the glasses down by Raven’s side as he opened the bottle of champagne with a loud pop. “Have you heard from Lotus yet?”

“No… They said I’d hear back in a couple of weeks” Raven sighed. Kimi handed her a glass as he picked up his own.

“Cheers”

“Cheers” They clinked their glasses together and took a sip. 2014 meant a new start for both of them, or for one of them at least.


	41. Friends, Team Mates and Everything In Between

_24 th January 2014 – McLaren Technology Centre_

The McLaren Technology Centre was filled with cameramen, paparazzi and any other free space was taken by McLaren personnel dressed in white, grey and black. Today was the day of the reveal of the McLaren MP4-29, and it was obvious that the team were pinning their hopes on their car after a terrible 2013. Ron Dennis was also there, casting his watchful eye around everyone. It made both Seanagh and Vanessa feel very nervous.

“I wish he would stop doing that” Vanessa took a quick glance over her shoulder.

“You wish who would stop doing what?” Richard returned with three cups of tea.

“Ron’s pacing and glancing over everyone is making Vanessa nervous” Seanagh looked up at her press officer taking one of the cups from his hands. “Thanks”

“Milk and one sugar right?” Seanagh nodded in reply as she took a sip of her tea. The warm drink calmed her nerves, she was still nervous as today was pretty big day but at least she wasn’t as nervous as she was this time last year. But she knew that this year was important, she had to make it work this year. She had to.

*  *  *

Nerves. That’s what he’d put it down to. Nerves. That tight twisted feeling in his stomach, the need to catch his breath every minute or so.

It felt odd being back at the factory, and even though he was wearing the same uniform as everyone else, he felt like he stood out like a sore thumb.

“Ah Jenson” He saw Ron walking towards him, Jenson’s heart rate had picked up again.

“Hello Ron” Shaking his boss’ hand he was beginning to feel more uneasy. It was really crowded in the pavilion where they were standing, and Jenson was getting various looks from all types of journalists.

“Shall we go to my office? There are things we need to discuss” Jenson nodded, following Ron towards the glass lift, smiling at the McLaren colleagues that he passed. He had an important decision to make.

*  *  *

“Okay, now you need to go and speak to Sky proto, they’ve been waiting for ten minutes” Richard lead Seanagh away from one group of journalists and towards the pavilion where a Sky camera crew was waiting for her.

“But I thought that I had already spoken to Sky” Seanagh looked up at her press officer as he led her toward the camera crew.

“You’ve spoken to the BBC, the Daily Mail, F1 Racing, goodness knows how many international journalists; you’ve spoken to everyone apart from Sky!” Richard looked at the various pieces of paper he was holding in his hand. “You’ll have to stand here and wait for Jenson to finish, I’m going to hospitality”

“What for?”

“Coffee” Seanagh nodded, standing a few feet behind on of the Sky cameraman as they rounded up their interview with Jenson. She waited a few minutes and Jenson left heading back towards the sea of journalists without looking at his team mate.

“We’re ready for you now, thanks for being patient” She was told where to stand in front of the camera before the interview started.

*  *  *

“Right then Jenson, that’s all the interviews done. We’ve got half an hour before the car reveal, oh and you’re new overalls are here, you’ll need these on for the official pictures. Okay?” Jenson nodded taking in everything that he was being told. “Best just put them on now, save any rushing around ten minutes before eh?”

“Yeah you’re probably right” Jenson sighed as he took his overalls out of Mikey’s hands. They looked plain without the Vodafone branding on the legs arms and chest, but it didn’t bother him too much.

“I haven’t seen you speak to Seanagh once today, everything alright with you two?”

“Why does everyone keep going on about her?!” Jenson, feeling very frustrated, zipped up his overalls and went out the room, going anywhere where he would definitely be alone.

*  *  *

“What do you think guys?” Walking back in with her new overalls on Seanagh wasn’t expecting Ron Dennis to be standing with Richard and Vanessa. “Oh… um…”

“Afternoon, do your new overalls fit alright?” Ron asked.

“Uh… yeah they feel fine”

“Good, we need you at the car in twenty five minutes”

“Okay” Ron walked out leaving the three of them alone. “Are you two alright?” Looking at her physio and press officer she saw that something wasn’t right with them.

“The car reveal is really soon and nobody can find Jenson” Vanessa looked at Seanagh pleadingly.

“Oh, well I haven’t spoken to him all day so I wouldn’t really know-” Seanagh began hesitantly, she knew what Vanessa was asking her, she’d probably get sent looking for him, not like she had anything better to do.

“Ron asked us if you go and find him, and tell him he’s needed by the car as soon as possible” Richard added, Seanagh knew she didn’t have any choice in the matter.

“Yeah, sure” She nodded heading down towards the other end of the building. _How am I meant to find him in this place?_

*  *  *

_Enstone_

“Okay guys, big smiles. You’re team mates now, look like it!” The two Lotus drivers stood in front of the photographer smiling as best they could since they had been smiling for the past ten minutes, and the photographer still wasn’t happy with his photos. “There we go, great photo! Thanks guys, you’re free to go now” The drivers headed to the hospitality area of the factory.

“See, it wasn’t so bad” Romain said with a smile.

“I forget how much press you have to do” His teammate sighed, adjusting their cap on their head. “Aren’t McLaren revealing their car today?”

“I think so”

“Huh… I guess we’re stealing some of their mojo then?”

“I suppose you could say that…” Romain replied hesitantly, in his new team mate’s eyes there was nothing like a driver reveal to take the attention away from McLaren.

*  *  *

“Jenson!”  Seanagh had been looking round the factory for at least ten minutes and although she was certain that she was alone, she was hesitant about calling his name down the empty corridors. Eventually Seanagh found herself looking at a set of steel double doors that was partially open. She walked in hesitantly and found herself in a large room filled with old McLaren F1 cars. A few lights were on and near the back of the room was a man with sandy blond hair wearing white racing overalls. Sighing Seanagh carefully made her way round all the various cars, they were all covered in plastic sheeting but they were all easily recognisable, ones driven by Senna and Prost, and Hakkinen and Hamilton, and Seanagh found Jenson with his back leaning against the sidepod of the 2011 MP4-26 at the very back of the room. His eyes were fixed at a point on the floor, and Seanagh was standing over him unsure of what to say. “Hi” He looked up at her, a blank expression on his face.

“Hey” He patted the space next to him. “You can sit down you know” She sat next to him silently. “Ron sent you looking for me?”

“Um not exactly… look Jenson-”

“I know what you’re going to say and-”

“What I was going to say is that I’m worried about you, I’ve barely seen you all day. I just want to see how you were holding up, that’s all” Jenson sighed looking down at his clasped hands.

“I’m coping I guess, all this media stuff was getting a bit much, like they just have the right to question everything about my personal life, it’s like I’m not even allowed to keep my private life _private_ ”

“I know Jense, I know”

“Still, I’ve got you with me” Seanagh looked at Jenson, slightly confused at what Jenson’s statement meant. “Well, when I’m travelling round the world I’ll need my team mate to keep me sane”

“So, you’re staying then?”

“Of course I’m staying, McLaren aren’t getting rid of me just yet” They stayed in silence for a few minutes after that, either looking at the floor or at the many cars that surrounded them. “You didn’t answer my question”

“Question? What question?”

“If Ron sent you looking for me or not” Jenson rand his hand across his face before ruffling his hair.

“He did, why does it matter?”

“I don’t know, I suppose it’s nice to know that my boss cars about me” Jenson threw his head back and looked up at the ceiling.

“Not just Ron” Seanagh instantly regretted speaking as Jenson looked at her with a quizzical gaze. _Why can’t I keep my mouth shut!_ “Well, I’m your friend as well as your team mate and well… I’m here for you Jenson. I mean I know that it’s pretty tough for you right now and that you’ve got your friends and family supporting you, but you’ve got me as well” Seanagh placed her hand on Jenson’s shoulder. “But, me and you have got a car reveal to go to so…” She stood up and brushed herself down, making sure her overalls were as clean as possible.

“You’re right, help me up would you. I’m an old man remember”

“I’d hardly call 34 old Jenson”

“Well considering you’re what 25 now? I’m the elder statesman in the team”

“Oh right so now you’re going to be racing in a crushed velvet jacket whilst smoking a cigar” Both drivers bust into laugher, and nearly fell over the front wing of one of the cars. “Careful, Ron will have us shot if we damage these” Once they were safely away from anything they could damage they made their way to the pavilion for the car reveal.

“So, what made you think that I’d be in there?”

“I don’t know, just a lucky guess”

“Well… thanks for what you said to me before. You’re a good friend to me, I’m glad Ron decided to keep you around” Jenson attempted to smile whist gently placing his arm round Seanagh’s shoulders.

“Me too”

*  *  *

_Stuck doing more interviews, great…_

“So Seanagh, it’s your second season at McLaren, last year was pretty tough for you and for the team. What are your feelings for this season?”

“Well, I think it’s very easy to say that we’re going to be winning every race this year. But the truth is that we genuinely don’t know how we are going to perform this year because these regulations are basically a blank sheet for everyone. So I think that after pre-season testing and after the first race in Australia that we’ll have a semi-decent idea of how out car is, but I think that I will probably be about a third of the way into the season that we can properly see how competitive we are”

“And it’s also you’re second year working with Jenson Button, what’s that like?”

“Well we know each other a little better than we did this time last year, but in all honesty Jenson is a really great guy to work with. You know we get on really well, we have a great working relationship, and what we’re both quite good at is that we tend to share a lot of information with each other about the car, which really helped the development process of the car last year, and hopefully it will be the same this year”

*  *  *

“Jenson, you’ve just turned 34 and you are the second oldest driver on the grid this year. How does that make you feel?”

“Well it would be nice if people stopped reminding me” The journalist laughed, making Jenson feel slightly less uneasy. “Well I’m quite experienced as a driver, which I think really helps the team. But I don’t really feel like I’m in my mid-thirties, which helps as well. But yeah I think my age doesn’t really affect me too much when it comes to racing”

“Okay and last question, do you think that you can win a race this year?”

“I will certainly try”


	42. Pre-Season Testing

_Woking_

“Hey JB”

“Hey” The drivers were sitting comparing notes after they’d both been in the simulator. They were currently taking a ten minute break and Seanagh was looking through twitter on her phone, and she found something that really surprised her. “What is it” She blinked a few times trying to comprehend what she was seeing. _Why wouldn’t she tell me?_ “Seanagh what is it?”

“Raven got the Lotus seat”

*  *  *

_Enstone_

“That looked like really great work there; if you continue on like that we’ll perform really well in testing” Raven nodded, looking at various data sheets while speaking to her race engineer. “Oh and Mr Lopez needs to speak top you right away. It’s about pre-season testing” Nodding again Raven was led to Gerard Lopez’s office. “In you go I’ll wait out here” She took a deep breath before walking into her boss’s office.

“Good morning, you wanted to see me?”

“Yes, please sit down. It won’t take long” Raven did as she was told and sat down in front of the large black desk.

“I’m really sorry to say this but unfortunately we aren’t ready to attend the pre-season test in Jerez”

“We’re what?!”

*  *  *

_28 th January – Circuito de Jerez, First pre-season test_

_This is it._ Nico thought while standing in front of the cameras along with Lewis and Toto in front of the car. He knew this season was going to be a clean slate, a fresh start. This was Nico’s fifth season with Mercedes, and he knew just how long the team had been working on this year’s car. Providing they performed well today then they might even be able to fight for the championship this season, but that was dependent on Red Bull, everyone was pretty much expecting them to have built a very good car. But no one would really know until the cars got out on track.

“Phew, glad that’s over” Lewis sighed with a smile when him and Nico were safe in the Mercedes motorhome.

“I know, you’re out on track today aren’t you?”

“Yeah I think so, I’m kinda nervous though”

“Nervous? How can you be nervous, you’re only driving a car” Nico asked with a small laugh as they went to get coffee.

“Well yeah, but it’s the new car. It’s different”

“I suppose” Nico shrugged, he would be driving the car tomorrow and was eager for the day to be over so he could pick Lewis’ brain about what driving the car was like.

“Did you hear about Lotus?” Lewis asked once they were sat down.

“No, what about them?”

“Two things, their car isn’t ready so they say they’re only gonna be at the tests in Bahrain”

“Ah, and the other thing”

“Yeah you’re not gonna believe this, that gave the second seat to that Sanders girl instead of Maldonado” Nico raised his eyebrows and took a sip of his coffee. Raven had gotten into F1 and she hadn’t even told him? Nico hadn’t really spoken to her since the end last year, but something important like that, well she would have told him. Wouldn’t she?

*  *  *

“This is so cool! I can’t believe I’m here… I’ve said that already haven’t I?”

“Yes you have Will, but I understand. And you’re making pre-season testing sound more exciting than it is” Seanagh was arriving at the circuit a little late since she’d gotten stuck in traffic. Will was in Jerez as well as his university was on half term break, and Seanagh was happy that he was there.

“Oh my god… was that Fernando Alonso” Will gasped looking over his shoulder. “Wow…” He exhaled with a grin.

“Now in the motorhome, please don’t bother anyone. There will be a lot of people working in there and they won’t appreciate being disturbed”

“Okay”

“Oh and if you see Jenson it’s probably a good idea to not bother him as well. He’s having a tough time right now”

“I know sis, you don’t need to tell me fifty times” Seanagh did feel a little bad that she was bossing her brother around. But she was the one that brought him over and she didn’t want to get in trouble if Will was getting in the way. They walked into the motorhome and Will looked almost taken aback. “Wait so all this came over on a lorry and a bunch of people put it together, neat”

“Yeah, I need to go up to my room and grab a couple of things I left here yesterday. Stay here and-”

“Don’t bother anyone, I know”

“Thanks Will” Seanagh smiled at her brother before heading upstairs.

*  *  *

Nico was sitting in the Mercedes garage watching Lewis out on track, everything seemed to be going well so far, and they hadn’t broken down like Red Bull, so that was very promising. He saw Toto and Susie Wolff walk past the garage and Toto dived in while Susie was probably heading to Williams.

“Lewis is looking pretty good out there. No problems so far” The moment Toto said that Lewis’s car stormed past, and went into the gravel trap at turn 1. “Spoke too soon” And Toto left to speak to the engineers on the pit wall to see what was wrong. Nico couldn’t see anything from the garage, and so decided to walk to the end of the pit lane to see what happened. He looked through the mesh wire fence and all he could (just) see was the back end of Lewis’s Mercedes and a settling cloud of dust from the gravel.

“Hey guys, sorry about that” Nico turned round and saw his team mate standing by the pit wall holding his helmet.

“What happened?” Nico asked as he jumped down.

“Something happened with the front wing, and then I went into the gravel” Lewis shrugged while rubbing the back of his neck “That’s about it”

“Right well go speak with your engineers, Nico go back to the motorhome. We’ll debrief later” Toto instructed, turning his attention back to the screen in front of him.

“You’re the boss” Lewis sighed as Nico followed him into the garage.

*  *  *

A mechanical and hydraulic installation failure. Of course it would happen on the first day of testing, Jenson had seen the car this morning in the garage, or more accurately what was left of the car as the mechanics were taking the car apart to fix the problem. Jenson was scrolling through twitter on his phone when someone not in McLaren uniform sat at an adjacent table.

“Hi” Jenson looked up and saw that the guy had just sat down was speaking to him.

“Hi” Jenson smiled politely, returning his attention back to his phone. _Probably just a journalist wanting an interview._

“Nice weather today, you know for late January” He spoke again, Jenson noticed his accent was mildly Scottish, and he did look oddly familiar.

“Yeah, lovely” Jenson now feeling slightly uneasy began typing out a text.

**Seanagh I’m getting pestered by a journalist… help!!**

He pressed send and went back onto twitter, making sure he was keeping his head down.

“Will!” Jenson looked up and saw Seanagh storm into the hospitality area. “Will I told you not to bother anyone”

“I was just trying to make a conversation” Jenson looked over, Seanagh must have known who this Will guy was, and they both looked slightly similar.

“Seanagh it’s fine, you’re friend wasn’t bothering me at all. I thought you were a journalist, sorry mate” Seanagh sighed, running her hand through her hair.

“Will this is Jenson, Jense this is my brother Will”

“Brother huh, younger or older?” Jenson asked as he went to shake Will’s hand

“Younger, I’m twenty”

“Ah, well you can sit down. The car’s broken so… I’m not going anywhere”

*  *  *

_30th January – Jerez Pre-season testing Day 3_

“Can you believe it; we’ve been some of the fastest cars out there. This is awesome” Lewis grinned as he walked into the circuit with Nico, it was early days but so far their car looked like one of the best.

“Well Ferrari and McLaren have been looking pretty good, Williams too. We shouldn’t be getting our hopes up” Nico shook his head and adjusted his sunglasses.

“Well yeah, but it’s a good sign for us Nico, it shows that we’ve got a good car this year” Lewis continued “But Palmer’s running in the afternoon for McLaren after Jenson, and you can’t underestimate her”

“Still feeling bitter after Hungary?” Nico asked, almost knowing the reply

“Oh shut up!”

*  *  *

Seanagh was in the McLaren motorhome, reading up the notes she had gotten off Jenson to prepare herself for her first day of running in the car.

“You’re still reading those notes?” Jenson – still in his overalls – walked over with Seanagh’s brother with three mugs.

“Yeah, so?”

“You’re more dedicated than I thought. Here I got you tea” Jenson placed the mug of tea on the table in front of her.

“Thanks”

“You know Will, Seanagh was never like this at testing last year. Your sister has raised her game” Jenson remarked, causing a chuckle from Seanagh’s brother.

“Well if you didn’t go fastest yesterday then I wouldn’t have to put all this effort in” Seanagh paused to take a sip of her tea before resuming her reading. “Plus these cars are more complicated, I want to know as much about them as I can”

“I remember growing up when Seanagh was karting, in the international series. Every night after dinner she’d shut herself in her room and study everything about the circuits she was going to, and if she wasn’t there she’d be in the garage looking over her kart”

“And Seanagh doesn’t appreciate being talked about in front of her!” She stood up and went up to her room to change into her overalls, leaving her tea on the table.

*  *  *

“Oops” Jenson watched as his team mate walked heavy footed up the stairs towards the drivers rooms.

“Yeah, she tends to get kind of touchy before anything majorly important, like today” Will shook his head and casually slurped on his coffee.

“Really, she’s always been like that?” Jenson asked, last year he’d known Seanagh to be either excited or nervous before a race, but never agitated.

“Yeah, I’m surprised you’ve been able to put up with her for so long. Before races and stuff I mean”

“No… I’ve never really noticed her to be like that”

“Hmm must be just you then” Will shrugged as Seanagh returned in her racing overalls.

“I need to go; I’ll see you two later”

“Good luck” Jenson looked up at his team mate with a warm grin.

“Yeah, we’ll be cheering you on from the pits!” Will waved as him and Jenson watch Seanagh’s retreating figure leave the motor home.

*  *  *

“You ready?” Seanagh’s race engineer Mark Temple asked, holding his driver’s helmet.

“As I’ll ever be” Seanagh sighed, pulling her balaclava over her head.

“Well good luck” She put on her helmet and got in her car, once she was strapped in by one of her engineers the car was dropped down and she drove her McLaren out on track.

*  *  *

The chequered flag had just been waved marking the end of the penultimate day in Jerez. Nico was sitting on the pit wall next to Toto watching the cars return to the pits.

“Third fastest today Lewis, good job. Box this lap” Toto said to Lewis over the team radio.

“What about everyone else?” Nico asked.

“There should be a timesheet printing off in the motor home, can you get it?”

“Sure” Nico removed his headset and crossed the pit lane heading over to the paddock.

*  *  *

Gripping the timesheet in her hand Seanagh jogged over to the McLaren motorhome eager to tell Will and Jenson how she’d done.

“That was a really good job out there, you should be proud of yourself” Mark patted Seanagh on the back as they entered the motorhome.

“Thanks Mark, can we debrief in five?”

“Yeah, I’ll need to grab some tea for the engineers and then we can start”

“Great, thanks Mark!” Seanagh smiled as she headed into hospitality, it didn’t take her long to find Will and Jenson. “Hey guys” She ran over toward them, still clutching the timesheet from today’s running.

“How’d you do? And don’t keep us in suspense” Will jumped up standing by his sister’s side.

“Take a look for yourself” Seanagh grinned as Jenson stood up looking over Seanagh’s shoulder as he examined the semi-crumpled timesheet in her hands.

_1\. Seanagh Palmer, McLaren, 1m 23.276s, 52 laps_   
_2\. Felipe Massa, Williams, 1m 23.700s, 47 laps_   
_3\. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, 1m 23.952s, 62 laps_   
_4\. Jenson Button, McLaren, 1m 25.030s, 40 laps_   
_5\. Fernando Alonso, Ferrari, 1m 25.495s, 58 laps_   
_6\. Nico Hulkenberg, Force India, 1m 26.096s, 17 laps_   
_7\. Jean-Eric Vergne, Toro Rosso, 1m 29.915s, 30 laps_   
_8\. Adrian Sutil, Sauber, 1m 30.161s, 34 laps_   
_9\. Robin Frijns, Caterham, No time, 10 laps_   
_10\. Max Chilton, Marussia, No time, 5 laps_   
_11\. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull, No time, 3 laps_

“Sweet! Fastest by half a second, nice one sis!” Will and Seanagh exchanged a high-five.

“What?! You were faster than me by 2.2 seconds, how did you…?” Mark emerged holding many cups of tea, which was Seanagh’s cue to return to the garage. “Gotta go, speak to you later!”

 

_27 th February – Bahrain International Circuit, First Bahrain Test_

_What am I doing here? I can’t believe I’m doing this…_ Raven had locked herself away in one of the bathrooms of the Lotus team building, it wasn’t ideal but she need her own space without being disturbed where she could breathe properly for five minutes. She was so nervous, and she wasn’t even driving the car until Friday.

“Raven, we need you now” Raven took in a deep breath as she pulled her now black hair into a ponytail. She opened the door and put on a smile.

“Ready”

“Great, Romain and Charles will lead the way” Raven nodded and her smile faded as the nerves began to fill her system again. She met Charles and Romain at the front of the team building and walked with them to where the car was.

“You will be fine, all you have to do is stand there for a couple of minutes while they take pictures”

“That’s it?”

“That’s it” Romain reassured as the group of three approached the car. Raven hoped he was right.

*  *  *

By the end of the day Sebastian had finished fourth fastest after completing only fourteen laps, it seemed like there would be no end to Red Bull’s misfortunes.

_2 nd March – Bahrain International Circuit. _

“Just one more day” Jenson sighed, walking into the circuit on the last day of testing. “One more day of testing”

“I can’t wait to get home, at least it’s not so hot there” Seanagh replied as she used her grey and white McLaren cap as a fan.

“Suit yourself; I’ve got some more triathlon training. Speaking of which… you haven’t got anything planned the weekend after Silverstone do you?”

“Not really, why do you ask?”

“Fancy doing my triathlon?” Jenson asked looking at his team mate.

“What, are you crazy?!” Seanagh placed her cap back on her head.

“It’s actually great fun; it’s in the grounds of this really nice hotel. The weather is always great, plus proceeds from my trust are going to Cancer Research UK and…” Jenson paused taking off his sunglasses. “I’m going to keep on asking you till you say yes”

“Don’t you have to train really hard for it though?”

“Yeah, but it really helps with your racing. It gives you an edge I guess”

“Can I think about it first?” The initial prospect sounded interesting, although Seanagh had heard about one of Jenson’s triathlons that happened a couple of years ago, and Jenson’s problem with a wetsuit…

“Sure, you will regret not doing it though”

“Jeez you’re persistent”

*  *  *

Seb’s last day of testing seemed promising, he’d managed to complete 77 problem free laps, he had only finished ninth fastest but it was a start. With these new cars reliability had to come first, then speed had to come second.

“That was a good job out there today Seb, we can work on it before Australia” Christian commented as he entered the garage.

“Thanks Christian” Seb handed his helmet over to Antti his new physio.

“I see you’ve gotten a new physio, what happened to Heikki?”

“He left, he was uncomfortable with all the media attention” That was a lie.

“Oh well, I’ll leave you with Rocky to debrief” Christian patted Seb on the back and returned to the pit wall. Sebastian turned to Rocky and they looked over all of his laps, Seb was desperate to know as much as he could as him and everyone else were pretty much clueless as to how the race in Australia would turn out.


	43. Here We Go Again...

_9 th March – Melbourne _

The airport was stuffier than Raven had imagined, and it was only the start of autumn in Australia.  She huffed and leaned heavily on her right leg as she waited for her suitcase to some round the baggage carousel. Raven wasn’t entirely happy with the way she had done in pre-season testing, not being at the Jerez test didn’t help, and neither did the team’s lack of funding, and Raven’s lack of getting to know how to handle the car… So she knew she wasn’t going to be standing on the podium come race day, but some points wouldn’t hurt, even if it was just one.

“… and then he looks at me and goes ‘If you were gonna drive like that then you could have told me first’ And so I laughed and said…” Nico walked by followed by a chorus of laughter, Raven felt bad not telling him about getting the Lotus drive, but telling Nico would have meant that in the space of 24 hours the entire paddock would know. _Finally!!_ Raven spotted her suitcase coming towards her on the luggage carousel, she hauled it off and pulled up and handle and headed toward the exit after going through customs.

Once she was at the hotel Raven had a quick shower and got changed into some fresh clothes, only to be interrupted by someone knocking on her door.

“Coming!” She smoothed down her hair and answered the door. “Hey Kimi, come in” He walked straight in and sat down on the sofa. “What can I do you for?”

“Sit, we need to talk”

“Um okay… is something the matter?”

“Sort of” Kimi took off his red Ferrari cap and set it down on the table. “Ferrari aren’t happy that we’re still… together” Blunt and straight to the point, very Kimi.

“Oh” Raven had wondered if it was going to be a problem, but she though that since Toto Wolff from Mercedes and Susie Wolff from Williams were married that maybe Ferrari might not have been too bothered. Obviously they were.

“They just want us to keep our relationship out of the public eye”

“Oh well that’s no problem” Raven shrugged.

“Well…” Kimi started, Raven knew there was something about the ‘well’ that didn’t sound good.

“Well?”

“Stefano said that we could still be together out of the media if they thought that we had split up” Kimi kept his eyes fixed on his Ferrari hat as he spoke.

“Huh so first Ferrari move you to a different hotel when you arrive and now they want you to break up with me?!” Raven threw her hands in the air and looked at her boyfriend trying to get some kind of response from him.

“I’ll let you think it over” He stood up and left the room. Raven stood there speechless. _Why do we have to be so complicated?_

*  *  *

Kimi had returned to his own hotel and felt guilty about telling Raven what Stefano had told him – or more like what Stefano had said to Kimi with Luca di Montezemolo by his side. Once in the hotel car park Kimi donned his reflective sunglasses and headed back out to the pool to re-join Seb.

“That didn’t take long” Seb remarked, not even looking up from his book.

“I didn’t think it would” Kimi lay back on the sun lounger, trying to forget the past thirty minutes.

“How did she take it?”

“How do you think she took it” Kimi huffed. Seb didn’t reply, his eyes fixed on the book he was reading. “Well?” Kimi asked. “Aren’t you going to say something?” Seb usually had something to say on just about anything.

“No, this is your problem to sort out”

_14 th March – Albert Park_

“So Nico, it’s the start of a new year for you. How do you feel?”

“I feel pretty good; I think that Mercedes have built a great car for me this year. It proved itself in testing so we have to see how we do on Sunday. But I’m feeling really positive.” Nico had lost count of just how many interviews he’d done today, he was getting through them but it seemed the queue of journalists would never end.

“And there’s another woman on the grid this year. Raven Sanders is debuting with Lotus – after very recently breaking up with Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen, what do you say to that?” _Kimi and Raven broke up?_ It was the first that Nico had heard of that.

“Umm…” Nico paused making sure he was diplomatic with his answer. “Well what other drivers do in their personal lives and in their own time is none of my concern. But I think it’s good that we have more women in the sport” The journalist looked slightly disappointed with Nico’s answer.

“Well thank you very much for you time” They shook up and shook hands as Nico was finally alone for the first time in hours.

“Hey Nico” Well, almost.

“Hey Lewis” Nico sighed as his team mate handed him a bottle of water. “Thanks”

“These journalists have been hounding us all day; I can only imagine what the guys at Red Bull have to put up with” Nico nodded, sipping on the cool water. “I’ve got a good feeling though this weekend, you know for the team”

“Yeah, we’ve got a good car. Williams look strong, as do McLaren. But I think we can beat them” Nico added with a smirk.

“Yeah… and it’ll be just like our karting days right?”

“You mean me kicking your ass, yeah pretty much” Nico and Lewis both laughed, Nico remembered his karting days with Lewis fondly, them battling it out for wins and championships, and the occasional hotel room scrap.

“Nah, it’ll be good though” Lewis stood up to leave. “I’ll see you around”

“See you” Nico half waved and finished his water before heading outside into the paddock armed with a sharpie pen and sunglasses, and ran into some more journalists. _The F1 media circus never stops._

*  *  *

“I never remember Australia being this hot” Raven remarked, using her cap as a fan in the heat.

“Jenson says that you get used to it, I don’t believe him”

“Come on, he lives in Monaco, he’s used to it” Raven sighed, to think that tomorrow she’d be driving and F1 car – her F1 car. “Hey Seanagh, did you get hounded by TV crews and journalists this time last year?”

“Yes” She replied with a small smile. “I mean what did you expect? We’re women that are actually competing in Formula 1, of course there’s going to be people talking about us”

“Well yeah, but I just get asked so many question by so many people. I mean, is there a way of dealing with it or…?”

“Not really, media is a big part of the sport, and the best way to keep them and the team happy is to smile and answer every question even if you’ve heard it a hundred times before” They walked on in silence towards the paddock. “Say Raven?”

“Yeah”

“Um, what happened with you and Kimi? Apparently you two broke it off”

“Oh… that” The women stopped walking near the paddock entrance, where it was pretty much journalist free. “Well, keep this to yourself will you?” Seanagh nodded allowing Raven to continue. “Well, we’re kinda doing what you and Seb are doing. Keeping our relationship out of the public eye”

“Oh”

“Yeah, Ferrari weren’t too keen on everyone knowing we were still together so we ‘broke up’ as it were”

“Right, I was just wondering. So you’re still an item then? Just not in the public eye”

“That’s right” Seanagh looked confused but walked towards the paddock entrance, scanning her paddock pass.

“Okay I was just wondering” Seanagh paused as she signed a couple of autographs and stood for some pictures. “Because Nico’s been asking me if I knew anything”

“He has?”

“Yeah, he came up to me just now and said ‘You live with Raven, you must know what’s going on?’ And well you live at Enstone now and I’m still in London, I told him that, and then he goes ‘But surely you know something’” Seanagh shook her head as she took off her black soft shell McLaren jacket. “So yeah, he was curious to say the least. Anyway this is me” She looked over her shoulder at the McLaren sign outside one of the team buildings. “I’ll catch up with you later; I’m doing a track walk thing with the BBC”

“Yeah I’ll speak to you later, bye” They waved each other off and Raven left heading towards the building that Lotus were in, before she found herself walking towards Mercedes.


	44. Race 1: Australia 2014

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Formula 1 circus starts up again for another year

“Come on”

“Look Jenson I said that I’d go out on a run with you, but I didn’t say round the circuit” Seanagh followed her team mate tying her hair up in a ponytail.

“It’s good triathlon training”

“And I still haven’t said if I’m doing your triathlon yet either” Jenson jumped over the concrete wall separating the pit lane from the circuit.

“But after our run if I can’t convince you to do my triathlon, then…”

“Then what?”

“I’ll think of something, come on” Jenson clapped Seanagh on the back and started jogging, with Seanagh by his side as they reached the first corner. Their run consisted of either jogging or sprinting around the track, Jenson was doing fine but Seanagh on the other hand was finding it hard to keep up.

“Jenson” She panted heavily slowing down her running pace “Can we… take five?”

“You asked ten minutes ago” Jenson shook his head and continued jogging. Seanagh – who felt that her legs would give way any second – took the executive decision to stop, and sat down on the artificial grass next to the circuit. Jenson turned round and shook his head, now walking toward his team mate.

“And _you_ said that you’ve been training over the winter…”

“I have been; I’m just trying to keep up with you and your long legs, help me up would you?” Seanagh extended her arms and Jenson pulled her up off the ground with ease. The pair continued jogging round the circuit and raced each other to the start/finish line.

“And Jenson Button wins the Australian Grand Prix over his team mate by five seconds. It’s a McLaren 1-2, what a way to start the year!” Jenson ran across the line with his arms stretched out wide with a grin plastered on his face.

“You wish JB” Seanagh sighed, beginning to climb over the concrete wall by the pits in an opening in the fence.

“What do you mean? We’ve got a good car”

“Yeah, but not good enough to be on the podium, let alone a 1-2. I mean, with the way Williams and Mercedes are…” She jumped down onto the grass, allowing Jenson to climb over.

“What happened to you being positive?”

“I’m not being negative, I’m being realistic”

“And so am I” Jenson landed beside Seanagh and they walked toward the paddock. “But, if one of us does get on the podium on Sunday… then you _have_ to do my triathlon”

“Okay, fine” Jenson held his hand out towards Seanagh for her to shake.

“It’s not official unless we shake hands” Seanagh rolled her eyes and shook Jenson’s hand.

“It’s a deal”

 

_15 th March – Australian Grand Prix, Qualifying_

Raven was desperate to get out on track when qualifying started, mainly due to the threat of rain for the rest of the session.

“Okay Raven radio check”

“Radio’s loud and clear” The Lotus was lowered onto the ground and Raven waited for the signal from one of her engineers to drive her car out of the garage.

“Pit lane is clear, out you go” Raven drove her car down the pit lane and out on track for her outlap, the car felt better than it had during third practice, she had one of the Ferrari’s behind her and everything was going fine until the lost the back end coming out of one of the corners. _It’s just a small mistake, everyone makes them…_ She crossed the start-finish line to start her flying lap, and there were tell-tale signs of rain on her visor, she locked up her tyres and went into the gravel at turn thirteen and after that her tyres had lost their temperature; it was like driving on ice.

“Okay Raven, it looks like we are out of Q1; we failed to set a time within 107%. So box this lap, box this lap” The heavy words of Raven’s race engineer summed up how terrible her first race weekend was going so far. The Lotus was just so slow compared to the other cars, and if it wasn’t slow then it was breaking down. But surely, surely, the race would go better, it had to.

“Confirm box this lap”

*  *  *

By the time Q2 had gotten underway the circuit was still wet, with almost every car on the intermediate tyre. Jenson was one of the first cars out on track and was warming the tyres getting ready for his first flying lap. He completed his lap without much trouble, but wasn’t entirely happy with his time.

“Okay Jenson that was a 1:48.9, Seanagh’s right behind you… she did a 1:57.6. We are currently P7” Dave didn’t bring that much comfort with his radio message, but he was nine seconds faster than Seanagh – that was something.

*  *  *

“Right Seanagh, we are currently P15 we can do better than this let’s see what we can do” By this point the rain had stopped, and so the track was getting quicker with every lap. “Jenson’s moved up to P3” _Focus, it’s only getting into Q3, how hard can that be?_ Seanagh crossed the line after another couple of laps, the screen on her steering wheel telling Seanagh that she was now P7.

*  *  *

The last few minutes of qualifying, Seanagh had pitted for new Inters and was currently in the drop zone in P11. The new tyres were her best shot of getting into Q3.

“Seanagh there’s yellow flags at the last corner, Raikkonen crashed. We need fast times in sector one and two” Her heart was pounding as she crossed the line knowing she couldn’t improve her time as she was the first to see the chequered flag.

“Have I done it? Am I in Q3?”

“Yep we finished P5, well done. Box, box, box”

*  *  *

“Sorry Jenson, the yellow flags caught us out, that’s P11 for tomorrow”

“I thought we had it there” Jenson was gutted; he thought that he’d made Q3.

“Yeah same here, box this lap”

*  *  *

P12. P-fucking-12. Could Seb’s season get any worse?

*  *  *

The top ten shoot out was underway, the rain had intensified even further and Nico had made the decision to go out on full wets, he was the first car out which was something. But he needed to give his all if he was to get pole position.

“Okay Nico, we have Ricciardo behind us, but let’s make this a good lap” Nico crossed the line setting a 1:45.5 it was a decent time, but he knew that he could do better.

“What was Lewis’ time?”

“He was slower, you’re setting personal bests on this lap, let’s keep this up” Nico did as he was told but wasn’t sure if he was on the right tyre.

“Guys I think I need some new wets”

“Okay, box, box, box” He pitted for his new tyres and went back out on track again. Lewis now had provisional pole and with the times Nico was setting on his current lap, he’d get pole. But then Nico went wide at turn eight nearly going into the gravel. _Next lap, I’ll do it on the nest lap._

*  *  *

There couldn’t have been more than a minute left of the session, Seanagh knew she needed to be as far up the grid as she could if she wanted a decent points haul, she crossed the line and went third fastest and she had time for one more lap.

*  *  *

Nico was on his last lap with just seconds left of Q3, he crossed the line and went fastest, but he knew that Lewis was still out on a lap.

“That was a good job out there Nico, we were pipped by Lewis and Ricciardo just then so we’re starting P3, box, box, box” A second row start for tomorrow, that was almost a guaranteed podium on Sunday. Nico could make it work.

*  *  *

Seanagh’s car was pushed into the garage by her engineers, and she could barely hide the smile on her face, starting P4 was a huge boost for her and for the team. She got out the car and took off her helmet and gloves before pulling off her balaclava.

“That was a fantastic job out there, well done” Her race engineer Mark clapped her on the shoulder and Ron Dennis came over to speak to her.

“Congratulations, that’s exactly where we want to be. Perhaps a podium tomorrow?”

“Oh… well I’ll certainly try” Seanagh replied with a smile, a podium wasn’t really on Seanagh’s mind, tomorrow she just wanted to get as many points as she could for the team. Ron walked over to Jenson’s side of the garage, causing Seanagh to exhale with relief.

“Seanagh!” Richard made his way through Seanagh’s race engineers holding a raincoat and Seanagh’s McLaren cap. “Media interviews, now” She made her way out of the garage and followed Richard towards the paddock. “It’s just a quick interview with the BBC, then we can go to the media pen” With her cap firmly fix on her head she joined Suzi Perry and David Coulthard.

“Well Seanagh Palmer starting fourth in the grid tomorrow at your second Australian Grand Prix, this must feel pretty good right now”

“Yeah it does, we didn’t have much luck last year with qualifying so to finish fourth today is great, the car felt really good to drive, even in the wet just trying not to make mistakes, so yeah I think that we really just gave it our all out there today”

“Try and put us inside the cockpit, what’s it like driving this year’s car compared to last year’s car”

“It’s very different, you know we have more torque so it’s harder to control the back end of the car, so that with the wet conditions, you know it wasn’t ideal but yeah the cars this year are so different compared to last year, and it’s taken time to get used to them now. I think we’re getting there and the team have been really supportive with me and Jenson trying to get out head round these cars”

“And do you think you can get a podium tomorrow? It would be a great way for McLaren to start the year”

“Uh yeah it would be, I don’t know is the honest answer, but we’ll see”

“Thanks Seanagh, and now let’s speak to Seanagh’s team mate Jenson Button who didn’t make Q3”

*  *  *

It was late in the evening when the drivers had returned to their hotels, Jenson and Sebastian were gutted considering their poor qualifying performances, and having been shown up by their team mates.

“I mean I can’t believe it, if it weren’t for the yellow flags then we both would have been in Q3” Seb sighed running his hand through his hair.

“Yeah, Valtteri’s penalty has pushed us up the grid but… it was just bad luck I guess” Jenson mirrored Seb’s deflated body language as he headed to the nearest left.

“Well good luck tomorrow Jenson” Seb waved and began to head in the opposite direction to Jenson.

“See you Seb” Jenson hoped that the race would go better.

_16 th March – Race Day_

The first race of the season had finally arrived and before everything got underway the drivers were headed toward the track for the start of season driver’s photo.

“Jense, does my hair look okay?”

“Huh?”

“My hair, does it look alright?” Jenson remembered Seanagh acting the same last year, fussing over her hair and general appearance.

“You look fine” Jenson pulled his cap on his head, squinting his eyes in the bright sunlight and joined the twenty drivers that had crowded round the photographer.

“Alright?” Jenson and Seanagh were sat at the end of the front row, and Jenson had Daniel sat next to him.

“Not so bad, yourself?” Jenson shrugged.

“Pretty good, I can’t really complain” Daniel grinned – when didn’t he – as the photographer shouted at the drivers.

“Okay everyone, face me!”

*  *  *

The drivers photograph took about ten minutes, and Seb was eager to return to the Red Bull garage. Rocky had informed him there was a problem with the Energy Recovery System on his car, and he wanted to know of it would be fixed before the race.

“Hey Rocky!” Seb jogged into his side of the Red Bull garage. “How’s Suzie? Is she fixed?”

“I think so” Rocky looked over his shoulder at Seb’s car, the team were still putting it back together. “We think the problem’s fixed. We’ll have to wait and see” Sebastian nodded and unzipped his overalls and let them hang at his hips. Daniel had arrived and bounded into his side of the garage with a beaming grin. From what Seb knew Daniel’s car was fine. _It’s just a one-time thing,_ Seb thought; _the car will be fine in Malaysia._ He hoped that would be the case.

*  *  *

“I mean you know I have a good car so starting P3 is almost a guaranteed podium for us so I’m just going to try and hope that I can win today” Nico smiled at the journalist as they went to speak to someone else, leaving Nico alone with his thoughts before the start of the race. It would mean the world for him to win, and it wouldn’t be a bad start to his championship hopes either.

*  *  *

“Okay we have an extra formation lap” Kimi’s engineer spoke to him over the team radio

“Why?”

“Both the Marussia’s have stalled, just go round and do another formation lap, the race will be one lap less” Kimi drove his Ferrari round for another formation lap, weaving his car to try and keep heat in his tyres. By the time Kimi was back in his grid spot he just wanted to race to start, the red lights started up again and this time they went out and Kimi pressed his foot down on the accelerator. Everything was fine going into the first corner until a Williams and a Caterham came out of nowhere and took each other out at turn one, and Kimi felt they were too close to his car for his liking.

“That crash was really close, I might have some damage”

“Okay we will have a look, you seem okay so far” Kimi sighed at the words of his race engineer and continued to focus on his racing. _Only fifty something laps to go._

*  *  *

Taking a last minute dive into the pits might have been a bad move, Jenson was just thankful that he didn’t knock down the bollard at the pit entry.

“Guys I’m in the pits”

“Yeah we saw you, this stop should bring you up to P4 after the safety car” Jenson stopped in the pit box for his new tyres and drive away after a few seconds and re-joined the track. If Jenson tried, he could get on the podium, and that would mean the world.

*  *  *

Having started in twenty first place Raven couldn’t really do much worse than she’d started. She was running in the back end of the pack, and had already been lapped by Nico’s Mercedes. Just then her car shuddered and began to slow considerably.

“Guys, there’s something wrong with my car” _Again._ Raven added in her head.

“Yeah it looks like something’s gone wrong with the power unit, just pull over to the side” Raven did so and switched off the engine and got out of the car as a group of marshals headed towards her. She took one last look at her car before heading toward the motorbike that would take her back to the pits. To her it was a bad ending to a bad weekend.

*  *  *

“Okay Seanagh we will be racing Jenson towards the end, let’s try our best to stay P3” Seanagh wasn’t even sure of how many laps were left but she knew that she had to keep pushing until the end of the race.

*  *  *

“Nico you’ve done it, you’ve won the Australian Grand Prix!!” Nico grinned as he crossed the finish line; he had actually won the race, and from third on the grid.

“Woohoo!! What a car you guys have given me! What a car!” He pulled the car into parc ferme and punched his fists in the air before running to greet his engineers. Nico knew that his car was quick, but he didn’t think that it was _that_ quick, as his car was the only one in parc ferme.  He went and got weighed at scrutineering, gave one last wave to the photographers as the second and third placed cars arrived and went up to the cool down room before the podium presentation. Nico went to look out the window to see who would be on the podium, he saw a McLaren and a Red Bull sandwiching his Mercedes, although he was unable to see the car numbers so Nico wasn’t sure just who it was. A couple of minutes later he heard two voices coming down the corridor – one Australian and one British. Daniel and Seanagh walked in together and both smiled at Nico, placing their helmets down on the table – Daniel was grinning from ear to ear.

“Congratulations mate” Daniel clapped Nico on the back and reached for a towel.

“Thanks, you too” Seanagh was looking out the window down at parc ferme, she walked back and also reached for a towel. “Well done out there”

“Thanks” Seanagh smiled at Nico, patting her face with the towel. “Tough race though, I hate safety cars”

“Don’t we all” Daniel added, looking out the window. “Man… this is sweet” Nico knew what Daniel meant, to finish on the podium at your home grand prix would be something, Nico hoped that he’d be able to achieve that as well this year.

“Guys, it’s time” Daniel cheered and Nico placed his first place Pirelli cap on his head.

“In third place driving for McLaren Mercedes – her first podium finish in Australia….”

“Seanagh that’s you!” She was still standing in the room bouncing up and down on her toes.

“Huh?” She rushed out onto the podium as they called out her name – causing Nico and Daniel to laugh – waving at the crowds with a beaming smile. Daniel walked out next, to the cheers of hundreds of Australian fans, Nico could only dream of getting that sort of welcome in Germany…

“And the winner driving for Mercedes, Nico Rosberg” Nico took his cue and went out onto the podium, pumping his fists in the air and cheering before standing on the top step and took off his cap as the first notes of the German national anthem were heard.

*  *  *

“Seanagh, how long does it take you to find a shirt?” The post-race celebrations and media duties had long finished and it being a very special race for Jenson the team were treating him to a surprise dinner with a specific dress code – pink shirts.

“As long as it takes, I bought it especially for this weekend and everything” It had all been planned by Seanagh and Mikey and a couple of Jenson’s friends a week or so before everyone flew out for the race. “Ah ha!” Seanagh pulled her pink shirt out of her suitcase and began to put it on over her vest top.

“Finally…” Vanessa checked her phone and gasped. “I better get going, you’re meeting Jenson and his friends at the lobby right?”

“Yeah, I’ll see you there” She left the hotel room and Seanagh followed a few minutes after, heading down to the hotel lobby.

“Hey” Jenson and his mates were already standing waiting for her, Jenson smiled and greeted Seanagh with a warm hug, after which they promptly left for the restaurant. “So where’s this place you’re taking me, you’re all being very quiet” Jenson too was following the pink shirt dress code, even though he didn’t know there was one.

“You’ll see” Mikey smirked, sharing a knowing look with the others.

*  *  *

Raven was so happy after the race last year, her and Seanagh were getting on well, and Nico… that was a whole different situation. She was sat in her hotel room aimlessly staring out the window with various thoughts going through her head. How could Lotus have gone from being to one of the best to one of the worst teams on the grid in a matter of months? She’d had possibly the worst start to her F1 career possible, Raven was just glad she brought some sponsorship money to the team – it wasn’t anything in the region of what Maldonado would have brought, making Raven wonder why she was picked over him – it was better than nothing. She just hoped that everything in her life would eventually get better.

*  *  *

Jenson was genuinely concerned about where he was being taken, eventually Mikey walked into one of Melbourne’s many restaurants and the sight that Jenson was met with actually took his breath away. The restaurant was filled with people from the team – and they were all in pink shirts.

“Oh my…” He covered his mouth with his hand and tried to blink away a few stray tears. “Th- This is for me?”

“Yep, for you and someone very special” Jenson – without hesitation – scooped Seanagh up in his arms and hugged her tightly, she probably had nothing to do with it but she was the nearest person there and had to do. He put her down and allowed Seanagh to lead him to their table. The tables were all joined together creating three long tables that stretched the length of the room. There were two seats left in between Eric and Vanessa and Jenson sat down and accepted a pint of beer from one of the waitresses. Half an hour passed and food was being handed out to everyone, Jenson opted for a steak and chips – Mikey would kill him for it but in a way Jenson was celebrating his fourth place. Eric clinked a spoon against his glass and stood up.

“I’d like to say a few words” Silence fell over the room and he began to speak. “It’s lovely seeing everyone here, this evening is a celebration in a way, we managed to achieve a wonderful result on track today, but also we are here to remember someone very special to the McLaren family” Jenson heard a chair move and saw Seanagh also standing up.

“I’m sorry Eric, may I?” He nodded and sat down again. “Yeah um to reiterate what Eric said, we had a great race today, so thanks for that one guys, I doubt we could have done it without you all” There were many happy looking faces around the room. “But also… Jenson, we all know that the last few months have been really tough for you. But, like Eric said, this team is kinda like family and we’re all here for you mate” Seanagh’s hand was now resting on Jenson’s shoulder; he could feel tears in his eyes again, happier ones this time. “And I would like to make a toast to someone who sadly can’t be here with us” She raised her glass, causing everyone else to do so. “To Papa Smurf”

“To Papa Smurf!”

*  *  *

An hour or so later the team had been fed and many of the senior figures in the team had left – not before saying bye to Jenson of course. Seanagh was by the bar, nursing a glass of red wine with music playing in the background.

“Hey” Mikey walked over and sat on the stool next to her. “Where’d that little speech come from?” Seanagh shook her head.

“I don’t know, it just happened”

“Well I know Jenson appreciated it… say, do you plan on telling him you were the one that had the idea for all this?” Seanagh sighed, finishing her wine and promptly asking for another glass.

“No, and I didn’t have the whole idea, just bits of it”

“Either way…”

“Is it really important that Jenson knows? No. End of story” Seanagh looked at Mikey who raised his eyebrow at her. “I just… want it to be secret, okay?”

“Okay” Mikey nodded as Jenson came over.

“Hey guys”

“Excuse me” Mikey left, allowing Jenson to take his place. Seanagh tried her best to smile but was think about what Mikey had said to her.

“You alright?”

“Yeah fine” She shrugged looking at her wine glass.

“Look um… I wanted to say thank for your little toast. It was very kind of you”

“It’s no problem” Seanagh smiled, she knew just what tonight meant to him.

“I mean, you know you said such nice things and…” Jenson paused as a new song started playing through the speakers. The look on Jenson’s face said it all. “Will you… um…”

“Sure” She took hold of his hand and led him toward the dance floor.

*  *  *

To Jenson the next morning reminded him of last year, waking up with a very sore head. This time however he was much quicker at packing and getting dressed, meaning he was actually there for breakfast (meaning Seanagh would make any carrier pigeon remarks like last year). In the lift on his way down Jenson looked through twitter on his phone, he had gotten many congratulation tweets, although many people were saying well done for the podium finish, when Jenson was sure he finished yesterday’s race in fourth place. Jenson walked into the hotel restaurant and found Seanagh helping herself to some cereal.

“Morning”

“Morning JB”

“I’ve been reading the weirdest tweets, everyone seems to think I finish in third yesterday, I was wondering if you knew why” Jenson filled a bowl with some greek yogurt, fruit and honey.

“The same thing happened to me this morning, I had a sea of people telling me I finished second” She looked around before continuing. “Yeah, after the race Ricciardo got disqualified, promoting me to second and you to third”

“Disqualified? What for?”

“I think Eric said it was to do with his car being in breach of the fuel flow regulations or something like that, Red Bull are appealing of course, so we’ll see”

“Huh” Jenson got a cup of tea before sitting down with Seanagh and some other people from the team. “You know this means you have to do my triathlon now right?” _Third place,_ he thought with a small smile, _Dad would be proud._

*  *  *

One down, eighteen to go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the huge gap between chapters, July was kind of a crazy month so I didn't really have time to write a chapter, and I wanted to take my time with this one so I was 100% happy with it. I'll try and get updates out more frequently (hopefully once a week if I can) thanks for your patience.


	45. Race 3: Bahrain 2014

_2 nd April – Bahrain_

“The first thing I’m doing is having a nice warm shower” Raven walked into the hotel lobby, the weather was so warm it was almost unbearable (for someone used to the UK’s not so warm climate)

“You’ll have to wait in line, the check-in queue is about half a mile long” Raven looked toward the reception desk, there were three separate queues that stretched towards the revolving doors. Raven sighed at the sight and headed over to the nearest seat with Seanagh in tow. “So, we haven’t spoken in a while. How’s it going at Lotus?” Raven knew she was just being curious, but two consecutive retirements was not something Raven wanted discuss.

“You know how it’s going. No Points”

“I didn’t mean that, I meant how are you getting on with the team?”

“Alright I guess, the team have all been very welcoming. But it’s tough for us right now, so anyone would be welcome really” Raven sighed running her hand through her hair. “But it’s all about making progress right?”

“Yep, progress, progress, progress” Raven wish that her car would suddenly get better this weekend and she’d finally be able to get some points, but deep down she knew it wasn’t to be. The girls sat and waited for another ten minutes before checking into their rooms. “Which one are you? I’m 724”

“417” Seanagh examined her key card and pressed the button for the lift.

“Oh well, at least we’re in the same hotel for once” They entered the lift and pressed the buttons for the fourth and seventh floors, after Seanagh’s quick departure Raven continued up to the seventh floor and made her way to her room, bumping into Romain along the way. “You okay Romain?” She asked her team mate, Raven was still finding it tough getting used to calling Romain her team mate.

“Yes, I just can’t find my room” He showed her his keycard.

“You’re next door to me” Raven led the way and was relieved to find rooms 724 and 725. Romain thanked Raven as they went into their respective rooms, Raven smiled at the sight of her double bed, resisting every urge to jump on it and fall right asleep.

*  *  *

_Come on, work!!_ After countless attempts Seanagh finally managed to get her key card to work on the hotel door and she walked in, closing the door behind her and heading straight for the bedroom. She fell on the bed and pulled her phone out of her pocket to check to see if she had any messages, after that she went onto twitter to send out a tweet to her fans.

‘ _Just arrived in Bahrain, feeling positive for this weekend. Bring it on!!_ ’ Just when she pressed send the bathroom door opened, causing Seanagh to jump up to face the intruder. Seanagh was stunned to see Jenson walkout. They looked at each other in shock before shouting at each other.

“What the hell are you doing in my hotel room?!”

*  *  *

Raven was sat with her Lotus mechanics at dinner, looking around the hotel restaurant to see who else was there. She spotted some people from McLaren and Marussia and that was about it apart from the very few number of guys from Force India and a couple of people from Williams.

“You alright there Raven, you’re awfully quiet” Her strap in guy asked.

“Yeah fine, just tired” Raven had barely picked at her food, there was so much going on in her head that she simply didn’t have the energy to eat. She’d had yet another argument with Kimi before they left Melbourne, and they had barely spoken to each other in Malaysia. Raven had no clue as to why they were fighting so much; she just wanted things to be like they were last year. After a bit of self-encouragement Raven managed to clear her plate and headed off to her hotel room.

“Hey Rae!” She turned and saw Seanagh beckoning her toward her table where Max and Jules were also sitting. “Come join us!”

“I’d love to but I need to go to bed, I’m quite tired”

“Fair enough, I’ll catch up with you tomorrow” Raven left and sighed with content when she was finally in her hotel room. She changed into her pyjamas and nestled herself under the duvet and drifted off to sleep.

*  *  *

Don’t get on each other’s nerves, Ron said. Just make the most of a difficult situation, Eric had told them. It was easier said than done, especially since Seanagh had been woken up in the middle of the night by her team mate – who she just happened to be sharing bed with because someone mucked up the hotel booking – kicking her in the shins. Seanagh knew Jenson didn’t have a lot of muscle, but he had a strong kick, one that was likely to leave a bruise. She looked over at the alarm clock on the bedside table, the glowing red numbers reading half past midnight.

“Hey” Jenson whispered, trying to get her attention.

“What is it JB?” Seanagh buried her head deeper into her pillow.

“Can I ask you something?” Seanagh sighed and rolled onto her back looking up at the ceiling.

“Sure”

“Do you… I mean this will sound a bit odd but, do you think I’m too old for formula one?” Seanagh turned her head and looked at Jenson; he was lying on his front picking at his finger nails.

“What kind of question is that? Of course not!”

“Well, it’s just that you know how journalists like to talk. And I know it’s only that start of the season but I’m out of contact this year, we both are. I’m just scared I’m gonna lose my seat that’s all” Jenson sighed and continued to pick at his finger nails. “Plus, it’s my 250th Grand Prix this weekend. Not many people get to that number of races, DC didn’t even manage that!”

“Jense…”

“I love Formula One, I don’t want to be anywhere else, but now that Ron’s back I feel like he’s scrutinising every little thing I do, we all know he wants top drivers for next year. What if we don’t cut it?”

“We?” Seanagh asked bemused.

“Me, I meant me, what if Ron doesn’t think I’m good enough anymore. It’s not like there’s any decent seats going right now. I wonder if the BBC or Sky have any jobs going”

“Look Jenson just calm down, it’s the start of the season, just chill out will you. McLaren are sure to keep you on” Hearing Jenson panic about his drive next year got Seanagh thinking, she too was out of contract this year after getting a one year extension at the end of last year, and she was certain that Jenson would be the driver picked over Seanagh should there need to be a decision about it. He was a world champion, and he had loads of experience compared to Seanagh’s twenty one grand prix and her grand total of one race win against Jenson’s fifteen, not to mention he’d worked with Honda in the past. McLaren were bound to keep Jenson on in Seanagh’s mind, she just hoped that she would be kept on as well.

_6 th April – Bahrain Grand Prix_

“Okay everyone big smiles” Jenson had seen many photographers in his time. And they all said the same thing: ‘eyes front’ ‘head’s up’ ‘keep smiling’. And to think that this was his 250th grand prix – McLaren had even made special t-shirts. Jenson looked down at his (everyone else in the team was wearing one) it felt so weird, he never imagined being world champion, let alone being Britain’s most experienced F1 driver. “Jenson, head up please” Jenson looked up and plastered on a smile. “Fantastic and I get one of the drivers please. This is the last one!” Jenson groaned as he and Seanagh stayed standing while everyone else went behind the photographer and a pit board was brought forward which read ‘Congratulations Jenson’s 250th Grand Prix’ it made him smile a little.

“Right so if you two could just hold a side each and look happy than that’ll be great” Jenson ad Seanagh shared a looked before putting on their best smiles and the photographer (hopefully) took his last few pictures. “Brilliant! Thanks guys!” Jenson gave a mental cheer before diving back into the McLaren garage. He looked at his watch and began counting down until the start of the race.

*  *  *

The sun had set in Bahrain and it was now night time, with bright white floodlights illuminating every part of the Bahrain circuit. Nico was glad to be starting the race from pole, but he and Lewis were now on one win each, Nico was still leading the driver’s championship however. But given all that he knew that there would be a serious race on his hands, Nico and Lewis had wished each other luck before the race which was perfectly normal, but Nico wondered how long into the season it would be before the now brewing rivalry took effect on their friendship.

“Nico, ten minutes before the start of the race. You need to be back in the car” Nico gave the data sheet he was looking at back to his engineer and made his way out onto the grid, switching his cap for his balaclava before putting on his helmet, HANS device and raving gloves. Nico would give this race his all, he was determined to win.

*  *  *

“And here we go for the start of the Bahrain Grand Prix! It’s all clean going down into the first corner… and Hamilton takes the lead off Rosberg going into turn one, Rosberg certainly isn’t going to be happy about that…”

*  *  *

So he’d lost the lead of the race. It bothered Nico a lot, but given the fact that the Mercedes cars were the two fastest cars of the whole grid he was safe in the knowledge that it would just be him and Lewis battling for the lead. By this point they had both made their first stops and Nico was currently leading as they went out of turn one, but at turn two Nico went wide slightly, allowing Lewis to cut across him and take the lead, and he went too close to Nico’s front wing for comfort.

“Guys tell him that was not on!!” Nico was pretty sure the team were getting nervous at the pit wall, but who cared? It was racing.

*  *  *

Lap 41… or was it 42? Raven had just pitted for new tyres, and she wasn’t really counting how many laps she had done, her race was going bad enough; colliding with Jean-Eric Vergne, and she was currently running miles outside the points, and now a Sauber was driving sideways through the pits… Raven looked around and realised she was no longer in the pit lane and was about to crash into a Sauber. She pressed on the breaks but it was no use as the Sauber had flipping into the air, barrelling through the air before landing in the turn one run off area. Without thinking Raven pressed hard on the throttle and drove away from the scene as fast as she could.

“Raven are you alright?”

“Uh… yeah” She replied to her race engineer, pretty much everyone saw the accident “I tried pressing on my breaks and they didn’t work” She lied through her teeth hoping the team would believe her, it was better than telling the truth and saying she wasn’t concentrating.

“Right okay we’ll have a look, but they’ve deployed the safety car” If she wasn’t driving Raven would have been hitting her head against a wall, of all the things she could do she pretty much caused a safety car.

“Okay, is the guy in the Sauber alright?”

“Yeah, Gutierrez is fine” That was a relief.

*  *  *

“Okay Seanagh safety car is still out, break and tyre temps are good, let’s try and save some fuel for later on” She pressed the right buttons on the steering wheel, Seanagh thought her fuel usage had been pretty good so far but her race engineer Mark sounded a little cautious. She went into the final few turns in first gear and went to change gear when nothing happened and her car began to slow going down the pit straight. Great.

“Uh Mark I can’t change gear” She tried to go up into second and third, but it was no use. “Okay my gearbox is gone, gearbox is gone”

“Yeah we can see that, just go into the run off area and park the car and come back to the garage”

“Sorry about that guys”

“It’s okay, engine off, engine off”

*  *  *

“Right then Nico safety car is in this lap, safety car is in this lap” Nico let out a sigh, he’d had enough of being stuck behind the safety car, he wanted to race, he needed to get this win.

“Nico it’s Paddy here, Lewis had the same message, there’s ten laps left of the race left, we need you to bring both cars home please” Nico stared at the back of Lewis’ car (which he was also stuck behind) and weaved his car to try and get some heat into his tyres, and going round the last corner he saw green flags on the start finish straight. Game. On.

*  *  *

“And they cross the line and Lewis Hamilton wins the Bahrain Grand Prix…”

*  *  *

Nico stopped his car in front of the ‘2’ sign in parc ferme, the last ten laps of the race were the best ever, although he was devastated he didn’t win the ten lap battle with Lewis took him back to their karting days. He jumped out of his car and almost rugby tackled Lewis in some form of celebration, Lewis pushed him away and the smile on his face underneath his helmet was evident. Nico matched his smile and went to see his engineers and mechanics. _Bring on China._


	46. Race 6: Monaco 2014

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look who finally updated! I'm really sorry this took forever, I've really had to focus on college and uni stuff (and I've also had a very sever case of writers block) these past months, but it's all out the way now so I can get back to writing this! I've also started work on another story which I might post the first bit of later today.
> 
> Although I'm starting uni in a couple of weeks so I don't know how often I'll be able to update this but I'll try for every couple of weeks.

_Tuesday 20 th May – South of France_

The drive from Nice airport to Monaco was meant to be short – half an hour at most – but Raven had just gotten so lost in the stunning scenery she nearly took two wrong turns, so she stopped at a road side café looking over the Mediterranean sea. It was all just so simple it was stunning, she knew Monaco would be different though, all yachts and millionaires and handbag dogs. Truth be told it wasn’t her thing, neither were tight and twisty street circuits that were more barrier than tarmac. Formula One wasn’t exactly playing up to all of Raven’s expectations. Growing up it seemed it was all standing on the podium, collecting hordes of trophies and spraying champagne, but in reality it was more jet lag, spending hours looking over data and telemetry and right now – no points. Romain had scored points in the last two races, lower top ten but points none the less. At least it showed that the Lotus car albeit slow and semi-liable to break down, it could, given the right circumstances earn points. And that knowledge was more than enough for Raven to think about.

 

“Passport please ma’am” Raven already had her passport ready for entering Monaco and handed it over for the customs man to look over and stamp. “I guess you are here for the grand prix?”

“Yes, yes I am” Raven replied with a proud smile. She might not be the biggest fan pf street circuits, but she was one of a handful of people that have – or soon would be – driven an F1 car round Monaco.

“I see, you have good seats?”

“Oh no, I’m participating. I drive for the Lotus team” Upon handing Raven back her passport the man looked shocked, and took off his sunglasses to get a better look at the Lotus driver.

“Oh well, have a good weekend” Raven smiled and drove into Monaco. She had been given directions to her hotel but the traffic was so packed she figured she wasn’t going anywhere for quite a while. When she arrived outside her hotel she was expecting to find some sort of car park nearby, instead a lobby boy trotted down the steps and opened Raven’s rental car door.

“Good afternoon Ma’am, and welcome to the Novotel Monte Carlo” Raven exhaled at she took an actual look at the place; it was by far the most expensive looking hotel she had ever stayed in. Ever.

“Good afternoon” Raven hesitantly stepped out her car and went to get her suitcase out the boot, the lobby boy hurriedly rushed to Raven’s side.  The lobby boy insisted on getting it for her, and rather annoyingly a second one appeared, they exchanged a few French pleasantries and the newer one turned to Raven.

“Good morning Madame, my colleague will take your car to our underground car park, if you care to follow me I’ll take you to reception” Raven handed over her car keys and followed the second lobby boy up to the golden revolving door. “Just go through the door and the reception desk is straight in front of you”

“Thanks” She walked through the door and was met with crystal chandeliers and marble floor tiles; it took her breath away and stood in awe for a few seconds before rationality took over. Her feet took her to the reception desk and the check in process was seamless (Raven had gotten used to the boring hotel check in process years ago). She was staying in room 417; it had a balcony that looked out onto the swimming pool, over some trees and she was just able to see a small stretch of road packed with cars. She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, in two days she’d be in her car, and she finally felt excited.

 

_Wednesday – McLaren Motorhome_

“Hey there teammate!” Jenson was still insisting on using his new nickname for Seanagh, who had been trying to concentrate on her data sheets.

“What do you want Jense?” He had this bright grin on his face, and was hiding something behind his back. “I need you to come with me, twitter thing” She sighed, leaving her data sheets behind and followed Jenson into one of the small offices where he presented her with a neon purple wig and a smile. Seanagh just looked at him with a raised eyebrow, he threw the wig at her to catch and Jenson proudly put an identical one on his head. Richard came in with McLaren’s social media phone which just added to her confusion.

“You need to put it on, it’s for Wig Wednesday” She vaguely remembered Richard telling her about it on the flight over, Seanagh tied her hair back and put the wig on as Jenson was fixing his in the reflection on his phone screen.

“You could have told me that, instead of throwing it at me”

“I told you it was a twitter thing” He slung his arm round her shoulders “Has anyone told you how lovely you look with neon hair?” She burst out laughing and put her arm round him resisting the urge to (gently) elbow him in the ribs. Richard – now satisfied that both drivers were smiling – took a few pictures and headed back to PR.

“Give back the wigs when you’re done” They took a selfies on their own phones and handed the wigs back to Richard.

“Well the fans will like that one” Seanagh sat down at her table reunited with her data sheets, Jenson chuckled and took the seat opposite her.

“I’m not sure about the colour though, maybe bright green” The thought of her teammate with neon green hair had Seanagh laughing for the rest of the day.

 

_Friday_

Rest day in Monaco was a chance for Raven to catch a breath, the first two practice sessions the day before had went alright – she was 14th in both sessions which certainly could have been worse. The sun was glittering down on the principality and she was waiting for Seanagh, who was running fifteen minutes late, she was supposed to be meeting her for some coffee. Raven had already gone through one cappuccino and was going to order another when Nico came round the corner waving at her.

“Good afternoon” He flagged down a waitress and placed an order in flawless French and took off his sunglasses.

“Afternoon”

“Seanagh got caught up in… team stuff, she’ll be here soon” He explained with a charming smile and the waitress came with two coffees and left again without a word.

“So she sent you instead?” Raven though that Seanagh would have sent Kimi (it would have made the most sense, he was her boyfriend after all) but company was company, and Nico wasn’t all that bad.

 

Seanagh felt bad for lying, her guilty conscience was eating her with every step, but Nico could easily talk the hind legs off a multilingual donkey so he would do a fine job of covering up the deception on his own. Although Seanagh had given up the coffee date an afternoon shopping in Monaco was not something going to be missed, Seanagh could see the coffee shop she had agreed to meet Raven at and her and Nico were laughing over two empty mugs.

“There she is” He pointed and stood up, greeting Seanagh with a polite kiss on the cheek. “I best get going, it was nice to see you Raven. Enjoy your shopping trip” Raven watched Nico walk away and Seanagh (still feeling semi-guilty) paid for the coffees.

“You ready to go? I’m really sorry about being late, I was looking over some data and-”

“It’s alright, don’t worry about it. Are we going now or what?”

“Sure” She smiled, since everyone seemed happy, maybe the white lie wasn’t that bad of an idea.

 

_Saturday – Qualifying, Q3_

Nico stayed sat in his car, looking out at the yellow flags that the marshals were furiously waving, waiting for the all clear to reverse back onto the track. Paddy had said something over team radio about wanting to speak to him before his press duties but he didn’t quite pick up all the details. Once he was back on track he drove round until the chequered flag.

“Okay Nico that is Pole position, great job”

 

Toto and Paddy didn’t really want to have this conversation at all, but Niki insisted on them doing so. Paddy had made the argument of waiting till Lewis and Nico had calmed down, but again Niki insisted on having the meeting now. Lewis had arrived first and the steam coming out of his ears was very obvious. Nico on the other hand, turned up five minutes late, was completely calm and sat down without even looking at his teammate. Paddy and Toto don’t really remember the meeting (apart from the fact it gave them a few new grey hairs), but Lewis and Nico may have shouted at each other, one accusing the other of being a cheat and so on and so forth. Niki eventually calmed them down, and Toto had warned them about the race, and if they had it out on track it would risk a double retirement, and no points. Neither of them liked the sound of that so they left with their knuckles verbally wrapped, everything was fine in camp Mercedes, for now.

 

_Sunday – Monaco Grand Prix_

“So Seanagh, your cousin Jolyon won this afternoon’s GP2 race. Do you think you can mirror his success this afternoon”

“Uh… I’m not so sure on that one. I think we’re just aiming for points today, but if anyone in front makes a mistake then we’ll try to capitalise on that”

“Thanks” The journalist left allowing Seanagh to dive in the McLaren garage. Jolyon and her uncle John had managed to find a spot at the back of the garage, she ran up to them and briefly exchanged hugs and wished of good luck before running back out onto the starting grid.

 

Every car moved away on the formation lap, all except her. Raven tried pressing every button on the steering wheel in attempt to get the car going, but it was all in vain as her mechanics began pushing the car towards the end of the pit lane.

“It’s no use guys I can’t get her to start” She flicked her visor up and pinched the bridge of her nose tightly.

“Yeah it looks like a problem with the fuel pump. The boys will push you straight into the garage”

“Copy that” Her car arrived at the garage just as the race started; and she stayed there anyway in the hope that Romain (and Nico) would have a good, trouble free race.

 

“I mean I know you guys are trying everything…” Seb had really, really had enough of his Renault engine, he would have happily taken it out his car and thrown it into the marina. “I’m sorry Seb we need to stop the car, race over” And it was only lap five…

 

“Guys are you sure we can’t fix it?” Jenson had just steamed past Seanagh into turn one, it seemed her and Seb had inherited the poorly engines for this race.

“I’m afraid not, Raikkonen’s behind, he might catch up on this lap so just let him through, we might be able to salvage tenth” Mark sounded as downbeat as Seanagh felt, but the team insisted she stayed running because the ERS failure wasn’t really affecting the car (apart from the fact it now resembled a turtle). By the time she reached the hairpin Kimi was already behind her so she did what she was told and let him by on the inside. But Kimi got stuck leaving the only place for Seanagh to go was Kimi’s rear tyre. She threw up her hands in frustration as the marshals started waving yellow flags, because her race clearly wasn’t going bad enough.

 

Nico pumped his fist in the hair has he cheered over the team radio, back to back wins at his home track, he must have been one of the luckiest guys in the world.

He’d been to the post-race dinner (only for the winners), and now it was time for the post-race party. Last year’s had been pretty wild (even by Nico’s standards) and he determined for this year’s to be even better. He had invited all of his mechanics, and a few of the drivers were there too. Notably, Raven was sat at the bar alone with a glass of whiskey. He’d only had a couple of drinks himself, and really wanted to start dancing.

“Hey! Why the long face?” He sat next to her and she scoffed and downed her drink.

“I didn’t even start the race, my fuel pump was fucked” The barman placed another whiskey in front of her. “Still, Romain got points and you won so it can’t be that bad” Nico grinned and waited for her to finish her drink.

“Do you want to dance?” A small smile appeared on Raven’s face.

“Why not” Nico led her to the dancefloor, fully intending to dance the night away.


	47. Race 7: Canada 2014

_Thursday 5 th June – Driver’s Hotel, Montreal_

“I wish you didn’t have that sponsor event” Sebastian watched as his girlfriend laughed and fixed her hair in the mirror.

“I wouldn’t if Ron didn’t decide to send me along last minute” She spun round, the long black fabric of her dress swirling at her ankles.

“You look lovely” Seanagh smiled at the floor, then at him, before checking the time on her phone realising she was running five minutes late. “I’ll walk you down” They briefly held hands walking to the door; the corridor was surprisingly quiet so Seb didn’t need to sneak out. The plus side of the drivers and team members being spread out across many hotels meant a smaller chance of someone catching them.

At the hotel lobby where they went separate ways Seanagh gently kissed Seb’s cheek goodbye leaving a small mark of red lipstick, and he wiped it away as he entered the restaurant joining his team for dinner.

 

Jenson looked at his watch, reading five minutes past seven. Seanagh was rarely late; she was always the one waiting on Jenson because he could never find anything in his room.  He let out a long sigh just as a set of lift doors opened and Seanagh walked out with Sebastian behind her. Jenson stood up and straightened his jacket walking to the centre of the hotel lobby; Seanagh kissed Seb on the cheek as a goodbye and joined him.

“This breaks your punctuality record you know” Seanagh raised an eyebrow and Jenson gave his best smile in response. His team mate shook her head with a laugh and changed the subject.

“Is the car not here yet?”

“No, Richard’s bringing it” Right on cue a black McLaren P1 pulled up at the hotel doors, the two drivers stepped outside, both in approval of the team’s car choice.

“Here’s the keys JB, have a good night you two” Richard rushed inside probably to try and beat at least some of the queue that would be forming at the restaurant buffet. They both got in the car and set off in an attempt to beat the downtown Montreal traffic.

“Your tie is squint” Seanagh squinted her eyes at the red stop light, as if she was trying to make it change faster.

“Huh?”

“You have a squint tie and we’re five minutes away from the event thing” She kept her eyes on the glowing red light and Jenson looked down to see that his tie had somehow angled itself to the left. He fixed it as the lights changed and allowed the car to have a little wheel spin as the traffic lights turned green, if anything it brought a small smirk to his teammate’s face.

“You look very… lovely tonight” He kept his eyes on the road to prevent Seanagh from seeing the red in his cheeks.

“You don’t scrub up too bad yourself JB” He could see her smile out the corner of his eyes, making Jenson’s face go that little bit redder.

The sponsor event started and ended went quicker than expected, and Jenson drove himself and Seanagh back to the hotel. Seanagh was on the phone to Seb, speaking mainly in English but occasionally switching to German when she felt it necessary, and she ended the phone call as the car pulled to a stop in front of the hotel.

“Home Sweet Home” Jenson just yawned and loosened his tie stepping out of the car. The pair walked into the hotel lobby at the same time and headed towards the lifts when Sebastian suddenly came into view. Jenson saw Seanagh’s face light up like the night sky when she saw him, she then cautiously looked round the lobby and when she was satisfied to see they were the only people there she went over and hugged him tightly. Jenson continued heading towards the lift without an acknowledgment from the other two drivers. With a quick glance over his shoulder Jenson saw that they weren’t leaving the lobby for a while, so Jenson took the stairs and went back to his room alone.

 

“So I guess I’ll see you in the paddock tomorrow” Seanagh was half standing in the doorway and half standing in the hotel corridor.

“Yeah you will, and maybe on track if you’re lucky” He replied with a cheeky grin.

“And get pulled to the stewards office for impeding you, no thanks” Seanagh only meant it as a joke, and thankfully Sebastian chuckled slightly.

“Of course, we can’t get each other getting into trouble” He paused to lean down and softly kiss Seanagh goodnight. “I’ll see you tomorrow then” He took a few steps backwards as someone further down the corridor came out of their room.

“Goodnight Seb”

“Goodnight Seanagh” Sebastian spun on his heel and walked towards his room and Seanagh slowly closed her door.

 

_Saturday 8 th June – Qualifying _

Sebastian couldn’t have been more pleased with his qualifying result if he tried, after pre-season testing he never imagined to be in the position he was in right now, Daniel had seemed to have a good result as well by going sixth quickest (although not so deep down Sebastian was pleased to have beaten him). The team’s success had brought back many memories of the previous season, particularly when Seb finally broke his duck and won the race from pole. Seb so desperately wanted things to be the same if not better for the race this time around.

 

_Sunday 9 th June – Canadian Grand Prix_

Nico really did not know what was going on, first Lewis and now a lap later himself had suddenly felt a massive loss of power in their car. Their lap times had dropped off the face of the earth and to make it worse – the Red Bulls were closing in on them.

 

Sebastian couldn’t quite believe the opportunity that had presented itself in the latter stage of the race, one Mercedes had retired thanks to over-heated brakes and it was a wonder the other was still running. All he needed to do was get past Perez and Massa and he would be on the podium alongside Daniel, which would be nothing short of a miracle. At the start of the last lap Seb knew what he needed to do, that was before Massa and Perez took each other out going into turn one. Luckily both drivers were okay, and Sebastian had somehow managed to miss the carnage and be promoted to third place. He was overjoyed when he crossed the line and thanked the team for all the effort they had put in to improve the car after Monaco, and whatever magic they had done worked like a charm.

In parc ferme Sebastian jumped out of his car and went over to Daniel for a celebratory team mate hug, he had after all just won his first race. On the podium Seb would be lying if he said he wasn’t happy for his team mate, because he was. Daniel had done a great job in the car that Sebastian hadn’t managed, at least not yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for this being so short, I'll have the next chapter up as soon as I can write it.


	48. Race 9: Britain 2014

_Thursday 3 rd July – Silverstone_

It was always a race for the drivers to leave the press conference, the less time they were trapped in a room with journalists the better. And after that it was a race to get back to the team motorhomes so they weren’t swarmed again by said journalists. Lewis dashed off first with the majority of the photographers following after him. One or two went after Max and Raven leaving the rest following Felipe, Jenson and Seanagh, who picked up their conversation after the photographers dispersed after a few snaps.

“Well that was mental” Seanagh commented, looking over her shoulder to double check there wasn’t anyone following them.

“You get used to it team mate, eventually”

“Well I’ll see you guys later, enjoy your interviews” The two McLaren drivers laughed and entered the air-conditioned sanctuary of the McLaren motorhome.

“I’ve never known Silverstone to be this hot” Seanagh took off her cap and used it to fan her face, the air-conditioning not quite doing its job.

“And I don’t think I’ve known this building to be so full of journalists” Jenson remarked looking over his shoulder as they climbed the stairs to the driver’s rooms.

“Well you have them all to yourself for the next hour or so” Seanagh opened the door to her room and picked up her helmet and overalls.

“Huh?” Seanagh could have sworn that Jenson looked terrified at having a hoard of journalists all to himself.

“I’ve got an interview with F1 Racing and a photoshoot thing with Susie and Raven for Autosport” She squeezed past Jenson out of the doorway; she looked round for Richard and saw him waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs. “I’ll see you in an hour Jense”

 

_Friday 4 th July – FP1_

The sun was still shining high in the sky by Friday; for once the British weather actually resembled the season it was supposed to be. Seanagh’s high ponytail gently swayed as she walked through the paddock, it was the only thing keeping her cool besides her drinks bottle. It had only been a few minutes and her overalls already felt quite cosy. She ran into Susie who had just left the Williams motorhome in her white Martini striped racing overalls.

“Hi”

“Hey. You know this isn’t too bad weather for racing” Susie replied, she was currently grinning from ear-to-ear.

“It’s lovely, for once. Although knowing our luck it’ll be raining tomorrow” Susie gave a small laugh in response. Raven joined them soon after and together they walked towards the pits until they had to go to their own teams.

 

Jenson carefully put on his bright pink helmet, taking extra care with the chin strap. It was something he had been doing for fifteen years, so really it was second nature now. Jenson’s family had turned out in force, and for first practice they had chosen to stay in the McLaren motorhome as soon as they had seen Seanagh’s parents. Jenson hauled himself into the car with ease and within a minute he was strapped into his seat looking at the data screen. A small corner of the screen was taken up by the FOM camera feed and one shot that caught Jenson’s eye was one of the grandstands, filled with fans waving British flags and some even wearing McLaren caps. The sight was enough to make Jenson grin inside his helmet.

 

It was hard for Raven to not smile when she looked out at the main grandstand from her side of the Lotus garage, every time she had driven past a roar of cheers and fluttering British and Scottish flags followed. The Scottish flags did make Raven feel bad for Susie however, whose car had broken down after only a couple of laps.

Susie was optimistic when Raven had ran into her in the paddock: “It’s okay, I’ve still got Germany to look forward to. And besides, I was the fastest car on track for a few minutes” Raven almost envied Susie’s almost eternal optimism; Raven had only seen a handful of chequered flags since Australia (admittedly, one or two retirements were her fault) and it hurt and felt like everyone else had all the luck in the world and Raven was stuck with the bad karma.

Kimi was becoming less and less of a comfort for Raven, they were still very much together but his bad season wasn’t doing him many favours either. The amount of evenings they spent apart was growing every race weekend, and it was no longer due to fear of being caught, more due to the fact they wanted to be alone.

 

_Saturday 5 th July – Qualifying_

“Seanagh!” She turned round and saw her cousin running into the back of the McLaren garage slightly out of breath.

“Jo, you made it” Seanagh sighed with relief and her and Jolyon shared a brief hug.

“Right before you got into the car, impeccable timing”

“I’d save that for the feature race if I were you” The light banter between the two was perfectly normal, one of the few constants Seanagh and Jolyon had while racing around the world. Jolyon reached over to the bench seat behind him and handed Seanagh her specially designed helmet: white with three thick stripes at the top middle and bottom of the helmet (one pillar box red, one chrome and the third royal blue), a one off design for her home race. Seanagh pulled the helmet onto her head and fastened the chin strap, before Jo pulled her into a hug.

“Good luck” He patted her on the shoulder and joined the rest of Seanagh’s family at the very back of the garage. Once Seanagh was in the car she looked up at the sky, the dark ominous rain clouds were still there and in the moments before the pit exit light turned green, the chill in the air merged with the electric atmosphere generated by the sea of fans and the growl of the engines when qualifying finally got underway.

 

He’d gotten P3. Jenson still couldn’t believe that he was standing next to Nico and Sebastian in front of photographers because for the first time in a long time Jenson had finished in the top three in qualifying. And it felt like the best thing in the world. The fans were still cheering when Jenson had to leave for the post-qualifying press conference, and for once he was actually happy to be there. After just over fifteen minutes Jenson left the press conference and entered the media pen to answer the exact same questions as before and was finally allowed to return to the McLaren motorhome for the team debrief.

The first people Jenson saw were his Mum and sisters, who all tried to hug him at once. It wasn’t all that comfortable but he felt so much love from them it was almost too much for him. They let Jenson dash away so he could get changed but he ran into Seanagh on the way who hugged him in congratulations as well.

“Well done on P3 mate, you need to tell me where to found those extra two tenths”

“Oh so that’s how close you were to me, where did you finish?” Jenson asked half opening the door to his driver room.

“Fifth, one tenth off Hulkenberg which is pretty crap; but never mind. I’m glad you did well, especially on this weekend. I’ll meet you downstairs”

“Thanks, oh by the way” Seanagh stopped and turned round. “Seb asked for you in the conference”

“Oh right, I’ll catch up with him later. Thanks team mate” Jenson smiled at Seanagh’s use of his nick name for her and went to get changed.

 

Raven was once again alone by the time she had returned to her hotel room, a lot of the drivers were staying in the BRDC campsite at the circuit but with everything going on Raven had decided to stay wither her team instead. The company wasn’t as frosty towards her, and she could have more than one fluid conversation with the guys from the team too. Raven’s mood wasn’t helped by the fact she had been excluded from qualifying (in front of her home crowd no less) over her fuel loads at the end of Q2 when she had been eliminated. After a while she went to bed exhausted and tried to dream of better things. Tomorrow was after all a new day.

 

_Sunday 6 th July – Silverstone Paddock_

All Jenson could see around him were his team wearing pink shirts. He was torn between looking straight ahead of him and looking all around him, seeing a sea of pink. Eventually Jenson kept looking at the photographer to stop himself from getting too emotional. Jenson was in the middle of the picture next to Ron, who had Seanagh on his other side. After the picture Jenson waited around for his Mum and sisters (who were all there including a few of Jenson’s friends) and headed back into the McLaren motorhome before the drivers parade. Jenson and his clan of people all sat down around one of the massive tables in the hospitality area and just talked for a while before Jenson was dragged away to the drivers parade.

On the way there Jenson was briefly alone with his own thoughts and he was relieved when his teammate joined him after a few minutes.

“Hey” Seanagh was very slightly out of breath and took a large sip from her drinks bottle. “I couldn’t find my shirt, someone had put it under my overalls” Jenson gave a small smile at the familiarity of his teammate losing something; she did it almost every race weekend. “What are you grinning at?”

“Just my idiot of a team mate”

“Oh thanks very much” The banter between them was perfectly normal, and was never anything more than playful. “Are you alright by the way, you um… looked a little down before”

“I’m as okay as I can be” Jenson took off his sunglasses as he and Seanagh arrived at the back of the empty garage where all the other drivers were stood. “But thanks for asking” Seanagh smiled at him and gently placed a hand on Jenson’s arm before going over to speak to Sebastian. The two teammates were together again on the drivers parade alongside Lewis, each grandstand got louder and louder with the home fans cheering for their drivers. All of the Brits jumped off the lorry at Stowe corner for a brief but planned moment with the fans. Jenson had taken off his grey McLaren sweatshirt to reveal his specially designed pink shirt and followed his compatriots back to the pits.

 

After the drivers parade Seanagh went up to her room for her pre-race massage and got changed just after. Once she had pulled on her white overalls there was a knock at the door followed by her entire family walking in.

“We just wanted to wish you luck before you headed out” Seanagh’s Mum smiled at her daughter proudly. Seanagh smiled back before she exchanged hugs with her Dad, brother, uncle and Jolyon, who all stayed for a few extra minutes before leaving.

“Best of luck cousin” Jolyon smiled brightly at Seanagh before letting Jenson in, who unknowingly to the Palmer’s had been outside waiting to see her.

“Hey” Jenson spoke softly and closed the door behind him.

“Hey” She replied letting out a sigh. “Six people do not fit in this tiny room at once” Jenson just laughed and leaned against the wall.

“Yeah it gets very cosy in here doesn’t it?” Seanagh hummed in agreement before going to pick up her helmet, instead she hesitated and stopped.

“Jense” Her team mate just hummed in reply. The younger Brit sighed and went to stand in front of him. “It’ll be okay you know”

“Yeah” Jenson scratched his neck still looking a bit lost. After a few moments of hesitation Seanagh leaned forward and hugged Jenson tightly, before going on her tiptoes to softly kiss his cheek in a manner that was nothing more than friendly.

“I guess I should wish you luck” Seanagh went back to pick up her helmet and gloves.

“I guess I should too” Jenson gave a proper smile for the first time in over an hour; he opened the door and held it open. “Good luck team mate” And he coyly kissed Seanagh’s cheek in return.

 

Raven honestly couldn’t remember much of the first lap, other than driving through a confetti of carbon fibre before pulling into the pits after the race was red flagged following the very brief safety car period. She jumped out of her Lotus and near-ran over to the pitwall and grabbed the attention of Mark her race engineer.

“Is Kimi alright?” Raven asked quietly, not wanting to grab the attention of any TV crews.

“Yeah he’s fine, maybe injured his ankle but Ferrari hasn’t confirmed anything yet” Raven breathed a deep sigh of relief and leaned against the Lotus pit wall and took in the warm July sunshine in an attempt to calm down and waited for the race to restart.

 

“Shit” It was the only thing anyone in the McLaren garage could mutter after watching the replay of Kimi’s crash with Felipe down Wellington straight. “That’s us for at least an hour while they clear that lot up” One of the mechanics announced loudly before standing up and going out into the pit lane to stretch his legs. Thankfully both drivers were okay but one of the barriers had been damaged as well as the carbon fibre that had been littered all across the track. Seanagh and Jenson both shared a look as Ron came over to join them.

“That was a very impressive start from you two, to have both cars second and third is a really great job, hopefully we can both have a top five finish today” Ron left as quietly as he arrived leaving everyone in the McLaren garage to once again talk amongst themselves.

 

After just over an hour, the race finally got back underway, Nico was still leading with the two McLaren’s separating him and Lewis. But after what felt like a handful of laps Lewis had made quick work of the two cars and was now back on Nico’s tail. After the first round of stops the McLaren’s were no longer a problem for Nico, but they were instead replaced by a Williams and a Red Bull as well as Lewis still pushing behind him. Despite all of that Nico was still in a comfortable lead by the halfway point in the race.

However, Nico’s luck was short lived. By lap 28 or 29, just after he had went through Copse corner his gearbox had failed, forcing him to retire. He could hear an entire grandstand of fans cheer as Lewis took the lead from him in an instant. Nico couldn’t do anything apart from take in a deep breath and head back to the pit on the back of a marshal’s motorbike.

 

Raven still felt lucky to have made it to lap 50 after her crash with Esteban earlier on in the race. Although the team still weren’t sure about what had brought her race to an end so close to the last lap, they were still marginally happy at having one car still in the race, albeit outside the points. Raven watched as Lewis took another win, Valtteri got second and Daniel edged Jenson out for third, Raven didn’t really care about the rest of the results, all that mattered to her was that she had a dismal run at her home race. Raven walked to the back of the garage and leaned against the back wall while looking at her car. The smell from the exhaust still wasn’t that great (which turned out to be the problem), and looking back the Lotus E22 hadn’t been the most reliable of cars and had more retirements than points scoring finishes. Raven hoped their luck would change, and she hoped it would be sooner rather than later.

 

“I’m sorry Mum” Jenson walked slowly into the motorhome long after the race and all his media duties were over and made a beeline for his Mum who for some reason was smiling very proudly.

“You have nothing to be sorry for, you did your best. That’s all anyone can ask of you” Jenson sighed and looked down at his feet. “He would be so proud of you today darling. I’ll let you go and get changed” Jenson weakly smiled and went up to his room passing a few team members along the way, who all congratulated him on a race well done. After getting changed Jenson gave himself a few minutes to reflect on the race, he was gutted about missing P3 by a handful of tenths. But on the other hand his Mum (as always it seemed) was right. After a while Jenson left with his things ready to head back to the BRDC campsite for a quiet evening with his family. Speaking of whom, they were all speaking to Seanagh and her family on the ground floor of the McLaren motorhome, and by the time Jenson had reached them he caught the tail end of their conversation.

“…they could have gotten. Jenson! Well done on fourth place” Seanagh’s Dad reached round and shook Jenson’s hand. Jenson replied with a quiet thank you as both families headed out of the doors and headed their separate ways. Just before they had reached Jenson’s motorhome he felt something crumpled up in his hands, it was a small piece of paper with Seanagh’s rushed handwriting scribbled on it, who must have placed it in Jenson’s hand without him noticing

_Well done on P4 team mate! See you on Monday_

It was enough to put a small smile on Jenson’s face for the rest of the day.


	49. Summer Break-Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not everything is rosy in the summer sun

_Friday 1 st August – Monte Carlo_

As usual, the sun in Monaco was always shining, and Friday morning was no exception. Nico had decided to take a stroll down to the marina, simply because he had nothing else to do. The factory at Brackley had closed for summer break and obviously there wasn’t a race on until the end of the month.

Yesterday morning he had went out for a bike ride up to the mountains followed by a quick half hour run, and the day before he had seen his Dad making sure that everything was okay. If Nico was going to be honest he was dreadfully bored, sure living in Monaco was lovely but the novelty would always quickly ware off and before he knew it Nico would be counting down the days to the next race. Only this time it would be until his next battle with Lewis.

It was so easy to see how the relationship had drastically soured between them, and ironically Monaco was where it all happened. He had pushed that weekend out of his mind long ago but he couldn’t help but remember the friendship they had the year before whenever they passed each other in their apartment building, more often than not without really acknowledging each other. It took Nico a little while to realise that he had walked all the way through the marina without even looking up from his white canvas shoes, so he decided to head over to his favourite coffee shop mentally thanking himself that he decided to bring his wallet with him.

Just as Nico stepped foot onto the road there were a chorus of shouts in two distinct English and Scottish accents before Nico turned round startled and saw an equally frightened Jenson and David.

“Watch where you’re going fella, with DC being the old man that he is he could have ran you over” David scowled at his friend and hit Jenson’s arm.

“I’m not that old that I can’t see people in front of me”

“Yeah, yeah whatever. We gotta go Nico, I’ll see you around” Jenson rode off leaving DC behind.

“Sorry about him”

“Don’t worry about it” Nico shrugged as he watched David leave and quickly crossed the road before he accidentally met another vehicle.

 

Jenson stood by his bike at the top of the mountain and waited for DC feeling slightly out of breath. He took off his helmet and cycling gloves and looked down onto the principality that glittered in the now early afternoon sun. Running a hand through his hair he closed his eyes and took in a deep breath of fresh air, finally feeling at ease for the first time in weeks.

“Jeez, I haven’t had to play catch up like that in a long long time” DC eventually arrived wheeling his bike to where Jenson was stood. “And what was with you being so sarky to Nico before at the marina?” Jenson didn’t really have a response and just shrugged. “Jenson ‘whatever your two middle names are’ Button…”

“Trying to use my full name now DC?” Jenson retorted with a fake cocky grin

“What the hell is wrong with you?” He sounded exasperated, and had only been with Jenson for an hour.

“Nothing” Even Jenson knew he replied for too fast. “If I told you, you wouldn’t believe me” Jenson huffed and put his cycling gloves and helmet back on. “Come on, if we go now we can make it back to the café before the lunch rush” Jenson hastily pedalled away only looking over his shoulder once to make sure that DC was following him.

“It’s your seat for next season isn’t it?!” David shouted over the wind that was rushing past their ears as they sped down the Monaco hills.

“Of course it bloody is!” Jenson waited until they were on flat ground before stopping his bike and shouting into the open air. “We all know Ron wants to sign Fernando for next year, and why would McLaren want me when they have Seanagh now?!” DC didn’t say anything; he just patted Jenson’s shoulder and comforted him with a small hug.

“I think we should go before anyone sees us, two men in lycra hugging each other isn’t a sight many people want to see before their lunch”

 

_Switzerland_

Raven hummed and whistled as she got changed out of her gym gear and into one of Kimi’s hoodies and a pair of what used to be skinny jeans that Raven had bought years ago. Kimi had unusually gone out for a run leaving the entire house at Raven’s disposal for the whole morning, and for a part of the early afternoon as well. By the time Kimi got back Raven had found him in the kitchen next to a six pack of mineral water. He also had one towel round his neck with another one his has hand patting down the sweat off his forehead.

“Nice run?” Raven asked and took a bottle of water for herself.

“Yeah, I ran into Sebastian and Seanagh for a little bit, they told me to say hello” He downed the bottle of water he was holding and disposed of the empty bottle before grabbing another one. “Was the gym alright for you?” Raven just nodded and took a small sip from her bottle. “Are you okay?” Kimi asked with genuine concern and placed everything he was holding down in the table.

“Yeah I’m fine” Raven hesitated before answering causing Kimi to sigh heavily.

“I think we need to talk Rae” She had known one of them was going to say that sentence eventually, but deep down hoped that it wasn’t going to be as bad as she thought. The couple silently left the kitchen and entered the large open living room and sat on the black leather sofa right in the middle of the room. The sat in silence for a few minutes before Raven plucked up the courage to speak.

“What’s this about exactly?”

“Do you still love me Raven?” The suddenness and slight bitterness of the question caught Raven on edge with air caught in her throat.

“O-of course I do Kimi” She stuttered her response as she finally got air back into her lungs after a minute or so. Sadly Kimi wasn’t satisfied with the answer and pressed the matter further.

“Yes but… are you still _in_ love with me?” The harsh way Kimi spoke his words combined with an icy glare, Raven quickly felt very faint as the situation was somehow much worse than she could have pictured it. She knew their relationship was under a lot of strain and they were going to break up eventually, but all she wanted it to be was on polite and mutual terms.

“I don’t understand…”

“You can always love more than one person but you can’t be in love with more than one person…” Kimi sounded angry, not just at Raven but also in part at himself. After a few moments of silence Raven tried to put the pieces of the last few months together and attempted to come up with a conclusion.

“Are you saying… you’re not in love with me anymore?” It hurt for Raven to ask, and there were tears starting to brim in her eyes. But at the same time she understood it, with them both having bad seasons it was only natural that eventually they would bring those frustrations home that would eventually pull their relationship apart. Kimi – who was now on his feet – shook his head and looked out of the window.

“I don’t think I am, and I don’t think you are with me either” Raven closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, wishing that she was anywhere else other than Kimi’s living room, and Monaco instantly came to mind. “I know it’s been difficult for us but… I still want you to be happy. Even if that isn’t with me” Raven gave a small inaudible gasp and felt a tear trickle down her face. “You can stay for the next couple of days as you planned, but after that I think it’s best if we… move on from each other” Raven knew what that meant and suddenly felt empty inside, and with the way Kimi’s shoulders had slumped he clearly felt the same too. Raven just got up from the sofa and left the living room not really knowing what room in the house to go to. “Raven” Kimi’s voice had only now started to crack and Raven spun round to see that he too had tears in his eyes. “You should go to Monaco and see him, maybe in a few days or in a few months but you need to see him”

“See who?”

“Nico”


	50. Race 12: Belgium 2014

_Thursday 21 st August – Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps_

Thursday at Spa meant summer break was well and truly over. The F1 fraternity piled into the paddock either happy to be back racing, still-half asleep yielding a cup of coffee, still half-asleep but trying to act cool about it, or Kimi – who was a lot more frown-y than his usual self.

By eleven o’clock the F1 personnel car park was already packed and there was a slight chill in the late-summer air with a small possibility of rain. In short it was a typical Spa weekend.

That was the case, until Seanagh and Jenson were pulled into Eric’s office for a ‘brief chat’.

“Like I said I will keep this brief” Eric sat down and repeated the word ‘brief’ for the fiftieth time in a minute. “About the second seat for next year” The air went from relaxed to tense in almost half a second. “You both probably know this already but it will be one of you two, but it will be a while before we – the team and the board members – can agree on a decision” Seanagh couldn’t bear to look at her team mate (mainly from the shock), so she looked between her boss and the back wall. Jenson and Eric then said something, Seanagh didn’t quite hear but she just nodded before getting out of her chair and leaving the room trying to find a quiet space where she could be alone with her thoughts for a minute. Jenson however had a different idea, and pulled them both into his driver room. They just looked at each other, the atmosphere getting tenser by the minute.

“Did you have any idea about this?” Seanagh asked. “I thought our seats were safe” Jenson huffed and sat down running both hands through his hair, spiking it up in all directions.

“There’s been some talk… you know online. That Ron wants to sign Alonso and that he actually wants to leave Ferrari”

“Shit” Seanagh shook her head and sat next to Jenson. “So it’s actually me against you then, for the second seat?” She looked at him, Jenson was biting his thumbnail and his shoulders were more tensed up than they should be, it must have been on his mind for a while. “Wonderful” Seanagh stood up and went to leave when a plea from Jenson stopped her.

“Just hang on a second” Seanagh turned round and folded her arms across her chest waiting for Jenson to speak. “We’re uh… not going to let this bother us are we?”

“I don’t see why we would” Seanagh give a very melancholy shrug.

“With the racing I mean” She shrugged again and just stared at her team mate.

“I don’t see how that would be affected either, I’ll see you later Jenson” Seanagh left Jenson’s private room and indeed the McLaren motorhome in search for Raven who had texted her at breakfast time saying that she wanted to speak to Seanagh at some point during the day. And while Seanagh couldn’t exactly waltz into the Lotus motor home looking for her she did bump into Romain in the paddock. “Hey Romain, sorry to bother you but Raven said she wanted to speak to me, have you seen her?” The Frenchman took off his sunglasses and placed them on top of his head.

“Uhhh… yes she said actually. I think she mentioned something about Eau Rouge”

“That’s great, cheers!” Seanagh spun on her heel and walked towards the pit lane and carefully strode through her side of the McLaren garage. “You’re doing a great job guys” A sea of murmured thank yous followed Seanagh out into the pit lane and once she was at the top of Eau Rouge she looked around trying to see where Raven was. Something caught her eye peeking out of the barriers a few hundred meters along from the grandstand and she went over to see what it was. The closer Seanagh got she realised it was Raven sat behind the barriers and Seanagh ended up jogging over. “Rae!” She didn’t turn round, so Seanagh climbed over the barrier and sat by her friend’s side. “You certainly know a good place to hide” Seanagh remarked and waited for Raven to speak.

“I wanted to talk in private” Raven pulled her knees up against her chest and rested her chin on her kneecaps.

“Well…” Seanagh looked around at the empty grandstand and ominous surrounding forest. “You certainly got that” When she saw the forlorn expression on Raven’s face Seanagh sighed and placed a hand on her shoulder. “So um… what’s the matter?”

“Kimi and me broke up a few weeks ago”

“Oh” It wasn’t something Seanagh had really expected to hear, and judging by how upset about it Raven looked she hadn’t expected it to happen either. “Rae I’m… I’m really sorry” Seanagh moved her arm so it was now round Raven’s shoulders and they awkwardly side hugged each other while still sat on the ground.

“No it’s for the best, I just need to get over it that’s all”

“Well if you need to crash in my hotel room to order room service and watch some awful late night Belgian comedy show then just say, I can’t have you being so upset and mopey” Raven just shook her head and gave a small smile while it looked as if tears were brimming in her bright blue eyes. “Hey, we women in motorsport need to stick together you know. So if you need anything just pop by the garage and see me. You’re my best mate alright, I’m here for you I promise” Seanagh pulled Raven up onto her feet and they hugged each other properly and Raven wiped away her tears before they could fall down her face.

“Can I tell you something Seanagh?”

“Only if we can head back to the paddock” Raven nodded and they helped each other over the barrier and walked towards the Eau Rouge grandstand.

“It’s just I’ve been thinking… I don’t want to be called Raven anymore”

“What?!” Seanagh exclaimed and stopped walking. “This isn’t some crazy post-breakup reinvention is it?” She stared wide eyed at her friend who had folded her arms across her chest.

“No, I’m being serious. I want people to use my real name again” Seanagh tilted her head to the side in confusion.

“I though Raven was your real name… Are you telling me we’ve been friends for seven years, even lived together, and I don’t even know you’re real name?!”

“You actually thought my Mum and Dad named me after a type of bird”

“Well… after I found out cousin Jolyon was _actually_ called Jolyon nothing really surprises me anymore” They both laughed and resumed walking at a slow pace. “But since you’ve brought it up…”

“Amelia Rachel Sanders, you can call me that or Amelia, Mia or Rachel or… whatever” Raven slid her hands into her pockets as the two drivers began to walk back down Eau Rouge

“I promise I won’t call you anything grossly offensive. But… I like Mia” Raven smiled (properly this time) and looked up at the sky when they were at the bottom of the steep incline. “But where did the whole Raven thing come from though?”

“Well Kimi started calling me Raven you see, just as a nickname, when we were first together. He thought that my hair was so dark it reminded him of a Raven’s feathers”

“Oh so that’s why you started dying your hair purple after you first broke up! I did wonder…”

“I just don’t want to be Raven anymore, I want to be me” Seanagh smiled and carefully walked past Dan and his mechanics as they started their track walk.

“Well then _Mia_ … I’m Seanagh, it’s very nice to meet you” Seanagh held out her hand and Mia gladly shook it.

“It’s nice to meet you too”

 

_Saturday 23 rd August – Qualifying _

“Nice job out there team mate”

“Thanks you too” They clasped hands and shared a one-armed hug.

“I’d hardly call tenth a good job” Jenson sighed looking at the timing screens in scrutineering. “How did the Mercs set two minutes fives in those conditions?”

“No idea, I would like to see their laps though”

“I think we all would” Seb chimed in and walked over to the two McLaren drivers after being weighed.

“Nice job on P3 Seb” Seanagh smiled up at him and placed an arm round his side for a moment before Nico and Lewis both walked in.

“Hmm, where did you finish?”

“Seventh” She replied in a sing song tone “Anyway we best get going, see you later” Seanagh and Jenson walked out of scrutineering together after briefly congratulation Nico on getting pole before heading back towards the garage.

“Seanagh, Jenson how do you think qualifying went today?” The two drivers were startled as a journalist plus cameraman appeared out of nowhere.

“Well the lower end of the top ten isn’t where we want to be, but hopefully in the dry we’ll be a bit better tomorrow” Jenson politely smiled.

“And Seanagh you out-qualified Jenson today, are you pleased with that?”

“Well I think I need to watch what I say considering he’s right next to me, but like Jenson said tomorrow is going to be a dry race so we can definitely improve on out performance today” Seanagh too gave the journalist a polite smile and waited for him and his camera man to leave before they walked into the McLaren garage. “I wish they would give us some warning before they start throwing questions at you” Jenson responded with a chuckle and patted his team mate’s shoulder.

“I think we both need to get used to it!”

 

_Sunday 24 th August – Belgian Grand Prix_

“He hit me, Nico hit me” Toto loudly cursed and slammed his fist against the table he was standing by watching the carnage take place on the screen in front of him. He and Niki shared a very displeased glare as they watched one of their cars drop down the field, while the other tried its best to hang on to its position. Toto sighed and cracked his knuckles under the table as a way of dealing with the sudden spike of anger.

“Easy” Niki leaned over “If you need a punch bag I’d recommend a set of tyres and _not_ the drivers”

 

“Okay Seanagh it looks like we’re under investigation with the stewards”

“What for?!”

“Forcing Alonso off track on the previous lap”

“Fuck!” She cursed off radio with a heavy sigh and after a few laps had been informed of the steward’s decision.

“Okay we have a twenty second time penalty that will be added to our race time. Looks like we are going to be racing Vergne towards the end of the race”

“I’m really sorry Mark” Seanagh shook her head and looked at the dash screen on her steering wheel.

“Just keep your head down; let’s see what we can manage”

 

Jenson cautiously knocked on his team mate’s door and opened it wide just enough that his arm would fit through the gap.

“I come in peace” He waved his balaclava before poking his head round the door. “Oh team mate…” Seanagh was slumped on the floor with a distinctive frown on her face. He entered Seanagh’s private room and quietly closed the door behind him and cautiously sat by her side. “If it makes you feel better, that last lap battle was great fun, and pretty much everyone thinks you’re time penalty was really shitty” Seanagh sighed, tapping her fingers against her thigh.

“I’m not pissed about _getting_ the penalty, it’s the fact it was twenty bloody seconds that I’m pissed at” Jenson patted her shoulder before standing up.

“Just don’t let it happen again in Monza, alright?”

“Don’t worry Jenson I have my tin helmet packed just in case”


	51. Race 14: Singapore 2014

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's finally done! I'm so sorry for this taking a whole month almost. The next one won't be up for a couple of weeks or so as I'm going on holiday for a week and a half so I don't know what I'll get written. But I just want to say a massive thank you for the comments after I've started writing again, I appreciate it all so so much. You guys are the best!

_Sunday 21 st September – Singapore Grand Prix_

Nico watched as every car bar himself pulled away on the formation lap. He tuned the steering wheel upside down to get better access to the clutch paddles but it was no use as his car was completely stuck on the grid. Once the last cars had driven past him Nico was pushed into the pit lane as was the regulations if you couldn’t do the formation lap. The team gave Nico a new steering wheel and it actually worked as Nico was able to get the car going and join the back of the field once the race had started.

“So the only thing that works on your dash is the gear shift paddles, okay?” He should have known that the message from the pit wall was a sign of things to come, and when he came into the pits after only completing thirteen laps he couldn’t get the car to get going again after changing the steering wheel and restarting the car at the stop, it was race over. “Okay let’s park it up” Nico had been waving his hands above the cockpit and shaking his head, his poor car had fallen to the heat of Singapore and well and truly had enough. As Nico’s mechanics half-heartedly pushed his car back into his side of the garage, he was emotionally torn: he was in part relieved at the fact what had turned out to be a horrid evening was over, and that at least the other car was running well. But the other car just happened to be Lewis, and if things continued to go the way they were – he was going to take the lead of the championship by just a mere handful of points.

“Hey” Toto came over and placed a pair of reassuring arms around his driver. “Shit happens; we’ll have it fixed for Japan. I’m really sorry for what’s happened today”

Nico waited a while before speaking to the press and stayed in the back of the garage watching the race; the battle between Fernando and Sebastian that as always seemed to go to the bitter end, Jean-Eric Vergne carving through the field and finishing in the points _with_ a time penalty, both McLaren’s fighting out in the top ten and a Lotus somewhere in the mix. After what seemed to be a semi-eventful Singapore Grand Prix, he took a stroll down to parc ferme to see if he could find and speak to Raven. He saw her speaking to a very red-faced Seanagh (who seemed to have some cooling problem with her car if McLaren’s radio messages were to be believed) and walked slowly towards them, catching the tail end of their conversation.

“Well just go and see the medical guys at McLaren; I’m sure you’ll be fine. Just tell them to fix whatever is was. See you!” Raven stuffed her gloves, earbuds and balaclava into her helmet and caught a glimpse of Nico and met him after a few steps. “Hi”

“Hi” Nico’s face split into a wide smile and ran a hand through his hair to keep his face cool in the intense heat and humidity. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, my race was a bit boring but at least I finished. What happened to you?” She was obviously gesturing to the fact Nico had already changed into his Mercedes team shirt and shorts.

“Well…” He paused to look over his shoulder as one of the PR guys of Lotus came speed walking down the pit lane in Raven’s direction. “Looks like you’re needed. Can we talk later?”

“Sure, sure. I’ll let you know when my post-race debrief has finished. Bye Nico!”

 

 

Mia sped through her interviews within twenty minutes, and the post-race debrief took a record time of forty five minutes. Once she had confirmation from the guys in PR that she was free to go she texted Nico to let him know they could talk, and she got a reply reasonably quickly that he was already back at his hotel and would meet her in the bar for a quick drink. She texted back saying she was on her way and grabbed her things from her private room before saying bye to the team and headed through the paddock and climbed on the back of her scooter and sped back to her hotel.

 

 

“Hey” Mia walked into the hotel bar breathless as she had ran through the car-park as to not keep Nico waiting any longer. “You okay?” She dumped her bag and helmet on the seat next to her and ordered a glass of red wine from the waiting barman.

“Yes fine, just waiting for you” Nico leaned his folded arms against the bar and gave Mia a small smile. She just smiled and felt a small flush in her cheeks. “Everything go well in the debrief?”

“Yes, but considering you’re a competitor I’m not going to tell you anymore” Mia gave the barman a thank you in the form of a smile and took a small sip of the cold wine given to her; condensation was already beginning to appear on the glass. “Anyway, what happened to your race then?”

“Oh I’m not sure if I should be telling a competitor” Nico paused and they both laughed light heartedly. “Something happened with the electronics, the actual internal combustion engine is fine but…” Nico huffed and gave a small shrug. “Toto promised they’d look into it so there’s nothing else I can do” He frowned and took a sip of what looked like beer and sighed. “Still, could have been a lot worse. How did your race go?”

“Twelfth. Nothing much happened other than stopping twice during the safety car…” Mia traced her finger on the condensation on her wine glass making all sorts of patterns. “I’ve been meaning to tell you, I broke up with Kimi over the summer break” Hearing the news nearly made Nico knock over his drink.

“Gosh, Raven I’m-”

“And it’s not Raven anymore. It’s Mia” She was getting used to using her real name quicker than expected, the team had all taken to it rather nicely as had quite a few of the journalists. “Can we take this outside?” She gestured to the outside terrace with her head and Nico nodded at the offer and led them out with his unspilled drink still in hand. “Sorry, I didn’t want to say anything else around any prying ears” Even though the bar seemed to be quiet she didn’t want to take any chances

“That’s quite alright… Mia” Nico spoke her name gently as if it was completely new to him, like they had never met before.

“Raven was a nickname Kimi gave me… I just… wanted to be myself again. Properly” She had taken the break up much better than expected, concentrating on the racing did help somewhat, but being surrounded by her always positive team helped too.

“I think that’s very admirable, and Mia really is a beautiful name. It suits you perfectly” Mia tried her best to hide behind her hair and her wine glass but his was no use, her cheeks were now redder than Fernando Alonso’s Ferrari. “But if you need anything, a chat or whatever. I’m just a phone call away”

“That’s really kind of you, but if Seanagh caught wind of that I think she’d end up a little jealous” They laughed again and Mia finished her wine in a large gulp. “I really should be going; I’m on an early afternoon flight back tomorrow. I’ll see you in Japan” Mia swung her bag over shoulders and held her scooter helmet in both of her hands.

“Yes I’ll see you then” Nico stood up and carefully placed a hand on Mia’s arm and leaned down to kiss her cheek, only narrowly missing the corner of her mouth. “I um… we should talk soon. I have something I need to ask you actually”

“Oh?”

“Oh don’t worry, it can wait till Abu Dhabi” Mia smiled at Nico one last time before walking through the now deserted bar and towards the lift that would take her to the fifth floor, and hopefully a pleasant night’s sleep.


	52. One Year

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A lot can happen in a few days, let alone a year.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I know I said I was on holiday... (and I am!). But I managed to get some inspiration the other day thanks to the lovely Scottish scenery (if you are ever in the Dundee area you have to visit Crombie Country Park, it's one of the most beautiful places I think I've ever been too!)
> 
> The chapter after this one has actually been pre-written for a few weeks so I'll post that in a couple of days, but in the mean time I hope you enjoy this one!

_Monday 29 th September – Tokyo _

_‘Fly to Tokyo on Sun. evening, arrive Monday. Stay Tues. and Wed. morning, take bullet train to Suzuka Wed. afternoon’_

Seanagh had her plans for the week jotted down in her small A5 size diary, because her and Sebastian were going to be spending their actual _anniversary_ on flights between Japan and Russia (and McLaren and Red Bull had roped them both into doing media work that evening) they had decided to fly out to Japan early to have an early anniversary in Tokyo before heading to the track to resume their racing personas. Sebastian was roaming the (very expensive) hotel’s fifty third floor in the hunt for their room, his weariness from the journey not helping in the slightest.

“Seb, just tell me which room we’re staying in and I’ll help you find it”

“No, I want this to be a surprise” He looked down at the key cards in his hands again and finally found the sign he was looking for. “Come on it’s just down this corridor” Seanagh huffed and wheeled her suitcase along the very expensive beige carpet and followed a very fast walking Seb; he stopped outside a grand looking door, with a gold plaque right in the middle.

“Jesus Seb, I though the Ritz-Carlton was fancy enough, but the _presidential suite?!_ ” Seb opened the door to a dark wood floor and light grey walls, with two floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking powerful skyscrapers to one side and the neon lit city centre to the other. There were small modern black chandeliers with tube lights hanging from the ceiling and furniture that was probably worth more than Seanagh’s McLaren salary. “Wow” Was all she could say as she looked out at the city view.

“I know it’s a lot but, I wanted this to be special. Considering we won’t be with each other Monday after the race” Seanagh sighed with content as Seb wrapped his arms around her and kissed her temple. “I love you”

 

They had the luxury of waking up on Tuesday morning after having a long lie-in to sleep off the nineteen hour flight and ordering a room service breakfast from the comfort of their King Size bed.

“I wish we could stay in rooms like this at every race” Seanagh yawned and stretched her arms high above her head as Sebastian walked in with breakfast on a silver tray in his complimentary fluffy white robe. “Oh my god you’re actually wearing that” She tried her best to suppress laughter and ended up letting out a light chuckle. Seb shook his head with a grin and tried not to drop the tray he was holding”

“Where would _Madame_ like her breakfast?” Seanagh slid down in the bed laughing and didn’t bother to stop it this time.

“If I could have my breakfast _without_ your awful butler impression than that would be wonderful dear” Seb shook his head and set the try down on one of the large bedside tables (that anywhere else would have been passed off as sleek black cabinets given their size) and climbed back into bed.

“I mean I still love you, but please don’t quite being a racing driver to start a butler service. I don’t think you’d get much business”

“You can’t say I wouldn’t be one of the most efficient butlers though, even with the fluffy white robe” Seanagh just rolled her eyes and sat up smiling.

“Well then ‘ _Mister racing driver turned super-efficient butler_ ’, may I have my breakfast please?” After leisurely eating their continental breakfast and drinking one too many cups of coffee, they left the hotel hand-in-hand by mid-morning ready to explore the streets of Tokyo together.

 

“We’re lost aren’t we?” Seanagh looked around the crowded park that they were standing in and glanced back at Seb who looked as confused as she was.

“I knew we should have taken the subway” He huffed and gently squeezed Seanagh’s hand. “Sorry”

“It’s alright, there’s plenty of art galleries back home anyway; let’s just find somewhere to have lunch shall we?” After a ten minute wander they found a semi-busy sushi restaurant a few feet down one of Tokyo’s many side streets, and were lucky to find a semi-secluded table for two. The look on Seb’s face implied that he had never eaten sushi before, which was surprising considering he’d been visiting Japan for the past seven years at least. “I’d get the Soba soup if I were you” His eyes frantically scoured the small menu in front of him

“Oh that… it sounds alright I suppose, you know I think I’ve actually had that before” Their orders were prepared a mere few metres away at the sushi bar and the pair were happily eating in minutes. “It’s not like I haven’t wanted to try sushi before” Seb explained eyeing up his girlfriend’s California Maki. “I just never have the time to find a good place” They stayed in the restaurant for just under an hour and slowly walked back to their hotel taking the same route of parks and busy streets as before.

 

Sebastian found himself looking at the night sky over Tokyo's many skyscrapers as he waited for Seanagh so they could head down to dinner. He carefully adjusted his black bow tie using the slight reflection of himself in the glass as a guide. He hadn’t realised until then how much he had needed this incredibly short break away from everything, over the past few weeks Ferrari had been making it increasingly tempting for Seb to lave Red Bull and join them, and he was beginning to wonder just how much of a good idea it was.

“Ready!” Seanagh’s voice brought him back to reality and he spun round and smiled once he saw her in the black dress she had previously worn in Canada.

“You look beautiful; you’re making me feel bad for not shaving now” He scratched at the stubble on his chin and looked at his shiny black shoes.

“Nonsense, you look fine” She walked over and softly kissed him. “Devilishly handsome even” Seb found himself staring into Seanagh’s pale green eyes and his external problems melted away for just a few minutes.

 

_Wednesday 1 st September – Suzuka_

The train journey from Tokyo to Suzuka (with a brief stop at Nagoya) had taken just under four hours, and in that time Seanagh was already missing the hotel staff that had treated her and Seb like family, and the time away from her life as a racing driver. Luckily her and Seb were staying in the same hotel, as were a few of the other drivers. She had a feeling Seb was going to be sneaking into her room Thursday night anyway.

“Right, so I’ll see you at the circuit then” Seb had walked Seanagh to her room (as he always did when he had the privilege to) and sighed knowing they had to keep their relationship in hiding once again.

“Yeah I’ll see you about tomorrow I’m sure” Out of nowhere Seb lunged forward and wrapped his arms around his girlfriend and softly kissed her on the mouth.

“I love you, and I know it’s early but Happy Anniversary”

“Happy early anniversary Seb”

 

_Friday 3 rd September _

Everything had been a pretty normal Friday at Suzuka, despite the awful weather Seanagh had done FP1 and FP2 as normal and was looking over her notes in preparation for third practice and qualifying. Sebastian had said he was going to stay with her that evening, and the one thing that had been abnormal was his behaviour. Whenever Seanagh had tried to have a conversation with him he was always zoning out, thinking about something he would never tell her, followed by an attempt at a reassuring smile and a ‘What were you saying again?’

By the time Seanagh had made all of her notes from her practice data it was almost midnight, and Seb had only just arrived looking both out of breath and incredibly relieved.

“There you are” Seanagh remarked as Seb dumped his smaller bag down on one of the chairs in the corner. “I was beginning to wonder if you were turning up at all”

“I was! I just… needed to speak to Christian about something, that’s all”

“Alright then, I’ll be heading off to bed. Some of us need sleep before qualifying you know” Seanagh laughed and went to grab her things when Seb’s cheery smile disappeared and he suddenly looked very serious.

“Actually I need to talk to you about something. I’m… myself and Red Bull announcing something tomorrow and I want you to hear it from me and not the press, or anyone else for that matter”

“Alright…” Seanagh sat down and waited for Seb to sit next to her; he took both of her hands in his and sighed, suddenly looking incredibly nervous all of a sudden. “You’re not pulling a shock retirement on us are you?”

“No, no. Definitely not” He briefly smiled before looking stern again. “I um…” He exhaled and darted his eyes around the room before looking straight into Seanagh’s eyes. “I’m leaving Red Bull at the end of this season, and I’m going to Ferrari” Seanagh’s jaw dropped and her eyes widened. It was nothing remotely like what she had in her mind.

“You’re doing _what?!_ ”


	53. Race 16: Russia 2014

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> From Russia without love...

_Tuesday 7 th October – Driver’s Hotel, Sochi_

The water from the shower was so hot it felt like molten lava, and it was almost burning Seanagh’s skin but it was the first thing she had felt for a good hour or so, and she decided to keep it that way. Words and thoughts were still running through her mind at once, she couldn’t really pin point any specific phrase or feeling, just that she felt slightly hollow inside. After a few minutes of standing under the burning water Seanagh just sat down at the opposite side of the large shower on the tiles curling herself up into a ball, allowing the water to gently splash her toes. So much had happened in her life over the past three months that she had struggled to keep track of everything, but the one thing her brain kept going back to was her seat at McLaren.

Seanagh worked hard to get it, and she thought she’d proved herself enough to be able to keep it. She thought that winning a Grand Prix and getting onto the podium in a non-competitive car on two occasions would be enough, but apparently not. Not when world champions become involved. And she didn’t want to think of the people she would let down (and the failure she felt she would become) if she lost her seat.

And then there was Jenson and Sebastian. She had to bite down on her bottom lip to stop a sob in the back of her throat; she knew she was in a right mess when it came to them. She cared for them both equally (a concept that a lot of the time Seanagh struggled to realise). And ever since an hour ago happened, there was a voice in Seanagh’s head wondering if she made a mistake in Korea last year. With that thought triggering an instant realisation Seanagh got out the shower, wrapping herself in at least three towels before sitting on the king sized bed with her back against the headboard, finally allowing herself to cry.

 

Jenson just for the life of him couldn’t think straight. He’d just find himself staring at his food or his beer with thought upon thought doing endless laps round his head. Eventually he managed to force some food down and trudge back to his room. He passed Seanagh’s door and thought about stopping but he didn’t. She would most likely with Seb and if they were in her room they wouldn’t want to be disturbed, and it would explain why neither of them were at dinner. Once he was back in his room Jenson went for a shower to try and clear his head – sadly for him it didn’t work. Instead he had the opportunity to pin point his thoughts, how he was doing and trying everything to keep his seat at McLaren, his team mate, everything that had happened over the season up until now, his team mate again…

He got out the shower and quickly got dressed and went out onto his balcony, looking out over Sochi. For Russia in October it was surprisingly warm, the weather was almost like Monaco which made Jenson feel at home. He took in a deep breath of the autumn air, just hoping for a better week.

 

_Friday 10 th October – Sochi Autodrom_

For coming to a new track Seb had expected to be excited, but if he was going to be painfully honest he didn’t really feel anything, particularly after Tuesday. He just sat on the floor in his cool down room in the Red Bull team building, Seb pressed his back against the wall as hard as he could to try and relieve some of the stress. It worked a little bit, and that little bit would have to do. The TV in his room was showing a replay of FP1, he chewed on his thumbnail as he watched and left the room when the camera had cut to Seanagh’s side of the McLaren garage. He shook his head and left his room without looking back and went on the search for Christian. If he was going to feel so shit over the whole weekend he might as well tell _someone_ about it.

“Christian!” Sebastian jogged down the stairs towards the main hospitality area looking for his boss.

“Ah Seb, I was looking for you actually” He sent one of the mechanics away and stood up from his seat. “Everything alright?”

“Yes, can I have a word in your office?” He had his hands on his hips and was unknowingly biting his lip.

“Of course” They headed to Christian’s office with minimal basic chatter, only for Seb to sigh with relief once he was in the office and the door was shut. “What’s the matter then, you haven’t changed your mind about Ferrari have you?”

“I hate to disappoint you but no” Seb couldn’t wait until the winter and to properly start at Ferrari. It was the fresh start he had wanted for months. “Can I ask why _you_ wanted to see me?” Christian raised his eyebrows but answered the question anyway.

“Well because Rocky said you looked completely miserable this morning, which personally I think he was putting it a bit mildly. What’s the matter?” Seb sighed and rubbed his face with his hands; in all honestly he wasn’t sure how he was even going to tell Christian, let alone if it was the right idea. “Seb?”

“I um…” He paused and walked around in a small circle; he looked up at the small screen and once again was faced with the sight of Seanagh’s chrome and black McLaren. “I broke up with Seanagh, on Tuesday” The words flew out of his mouth colder than Seb had wanted, and he just found himself staring at the screen with tears starting to form in his eyes.

“Oh… Seb I’m sorry to hear that” Christian genuinely sounded moved by the news, albeit slightly. Seb knew deep down Christian wasn’t entirely fond of Seb and Seanagh being together, but Seb was delivering results at the time so it didn’t really matter. Now however it was a different story. When Christian stood up and placed a hand on his driver’s shoulder Sebastian didn’t realise that he had been silently crying. Perhaps coming to Christian wasn’t the best idea since right now he looked incredibly awkward and out of place. “I’m genuinely sorry Sebastian, it’s probably best to focus on the racing right now. Everything will settle down eventually” Seb nodded and gave a small sniffle.

“I’m sorry for bothering you with this”

“Well until the 1st of January I’m still your boss… but for the sake of both of you, I’ll promise to keep this quiet. Indefinitely”

“A-are you sure?” The whole reason that Heikki had left at the start of the year was because he was fed up of keeping other people’s secrets, Seb didn’t blame him really. But deep down he was relieved that him and now Christian too had promised to keep the whole thing quiet out of common decency.

“Yes Seb I am. Now go to your room, calm down and focus on FP2. Okay?” Seb nodded and ended up hugging Christian without thinking about it.

“Okay, thanks Christian” Seb left his office and met Britta on the way back to his driver room. “Hi” Since he had told Christian it was only right that he told Britta, mainly to avoid her having any awkward conversations in the paddock.

“Everything okay Seb? I saw you coming out of Christian’s office” Seb could always confide in Britta, and it was something over the years he had greatly appreciated. And right now he needed to get everything off his chest if he was going to be completely focused on second practice.

“Yeah um… can I talk to you for a second?” She nodded and walked into Seb’s private room without asking where to go and waited inside. “I broke up with Seanagh, on Tuesday” It was slightly easier to say the second time round, but deep down it still hurt just the same. Britta’s reaction was the polar opposite to Christian’s however; she gasped and rushed to Seb’s side to hug him.

“Oh dear… Sebastian I’m so sorry”

“No, no it’s fine… it was going to happen eventually”

“No but… so soon after your anniversary, I though you said it went well” It did, it was the most wonderful two days he’d ever had. Just Seanagh and Sebastian by themselves _as_ themselves, they had completely forgotten about racing and it was wonderful.

“It was perfect…” And all of a sudden Seb’s emotions rose to the surface and he let out a loud sob. Why did he have to be such a mess? Britta shook her head and sat Seb down before hugging him tightly. “We were fine, everything was fine. I didn’t need to do it. But I stupidly started to overthink everything on the flight over here and I talked myself into thinking I had to do it!”

“But… did you want to?”

“No!” Seb stood up again and pulled at his hair. “God no, but… with her fighting for a seat at McLaren I didn’t want to be a distraction and me going to Ferrari we couldn’t be together anymore, could we?” He wanted Britta to say yes, even if she didn’t mean it. Seb just wanted to know he hadn’t made a terrible mistake. Britta’s silence confirmed that he had. “ _Scheiße_ , I love her and I’ve thrown her away like a crushed can!” Seb slammed his fist against the wall to try and vent out his anger, it had worked but now his hand hurt. A lot (it was his upshifting hand too). Britta sighed and hugged Seb, reassuring him that deep down it was for the best for both of them in the long run. And promised that she would never _ever_ breathe a word about it to anyone. And that’s she’d get some ice for his now partially swollen hand.

 

The third sector of Seanagh’s first proper flying lap in second practice was going relatively well. She was trying to find the limit in using the kerbs that so far weren’t biting Seanagh in the rear suspension. That was until; she heard a loud noise and felt a sudden loss of power. _Crap._ Luckily, Seanagh was at the very end of her lap and managed to get her car to crawl into the pit lane, where her mechanics were already waiting for her to push the poorly MP4-29 into the garage. Once in Seanagh slowly got out of the car and yawned before taking off her helmet and went over to Mark who just shook his head and frowned.

“Looks like it’s the gearbox” He sighed, and noticed the expression on Seanagh’s face fall. “Looks like it’s a terminal failure. So we have to change it and take a gearbox penalty” Normally Seanagh would have accepted the situation and moved on, but given the events of the past few days and her lack of sleep, it came as a shock to the system and she had to cover her mouth and look down to stop anyone to see her sobbing. “Hey, come on now these things happen” Mark patted her shoulder; he must have been surprised to see a driver cry over a busted gearbox. “Seanagh… come on look at me” She did so reluctantly and wiped her eyes quickly with her overall sleeves. “Is everything alright?” She could have laughed at that, but of course Mark wasn’t aware about Seanagh’s current situation. As far as he was concerned her life was probably all sunshine and rose petals. “Come on let’s get you to hospitality” They left the garage as subtly as they could without the press spotting them too quickly. And they dived into the team hospitality building before anyone saw. Mark left Seanagh by the stairs while he found Vanessa, he obviously didn’t tell her much other than the crying and he quickly headed back to the garage to check on the car.

“Come on, upstairs with you” Vanessa led Seanagh to her driver room and firmly shut the door behind them. It was only then Seanagh’s physio had noticed the dark circles under her driver’s eyes and the fact her face was drained of colour. “You look _awful_ ” Vanessa had always taken the ‘firm but fair’ approach with Seanagh’s training and sometimes in general life as well, but she was wonderful at reading people and knew when to be gentle in certain situations. “Do you want me to grab you some coffee from downstairs?”

“No, I’ve already had four today so far”

“Four?!” Seanagh had already counted them in her head; one when she woke up, another at breakfast, a third when she arrived at the circuit and an espresso before she got in the car for FP1. And it wasn’t even two in the afternoon yet. “How much sleep have you had? And _don’t_ lie”

“Three… maybe three and a half hours” Vanessa threw her hands up in the air before walking over to Seanagh and crouched in front of her.

“Any reason why?”

“I broke up with Sebastian…” Again the lack of proper sleep made Seanagh start to cry again, this time Vanessa rubbed her back and told her that everything would be alright.

“This stays between you, me and these four walls. Okay?” Seanagh nodded and hugged Vanessa, sobbing heavily into her shoulder.

 

_Sunday 12 th October – Post-Russian Grand Prix_

“Oh here they are! Seanagh, Jenson; we’re live on the BBC red button forum. Mind if we have a quick chat?” They both turned round at Suzi Perry’s invitation, they hadn’t meant to walk towards the hospitality building together. Seanagh just happened to be behind Jenson at the time. The two McLaren drivers looked at each other and shrugged before joining the BBC crew. “Thanks for joining us, you both had a pretty solid race today, Jenson you were fourth and Seanagh you recovered very well to finish fifth from starting in eleventh. Quite a solid race for you two?”

“It was okay, I must admit I was a bit lonely until Seanagh finally caught up, but it was nice to get some solid points for both of us” Jenson turned to Seanagh, signalling for her to continue.

“Yeah well… the gearbox penalty didn’t help much but luckily for me it seems that you can overtake pretty easily around here so that wasn’t so bad. And like Jenson said it’s nice to get some solid points and for me to not have any penalties or for both our cars to be running smoothly. So although nothing much happened we kinda needed a quiet race really” Since Friday Seanagh was finding it easier to deal with the press, thanks to finally being able to have a good night’s sleep for the first time since Tuesday.

“Now Seanagh, we should probably ask you to send our congratulations to your cousin Jolyon for winning the GP2 championship yesterday” Seanagh beamed at the mentioning of it, it was some good news that the whole family needed given Seanagh’s seat situation.

“Yeah yesterday was pretty cool. I watched the race with Jo’s Dad in his team’s garage, and it was so great to see him win. You know he really deserves it given how long he’s been in GP2 so my lot are all heading home really happy”

“Speaking of leaving we need to go, see you on the flight later DC yeah?” Seanagh rolled her eyes at her team mate making plans on live television.

“Aye I’ll see you later” Seanagh followed Jenson into the building and was surprised to see him waiting for her and they climbed the stairs heading for their driver rooms to grab their things.

“You alright there buddy, you’re been awfully quiet this weekend. I would have invited you on the flight this evening but it’s pretty full. Plus I know you mentioned something about visiting Moscow with Sebastian” Seanagh froze near the top of the stairs and looked up at Jenson; somehow she had completely forgot to tell him, although she wasn’t sure why she felt the need to.

“Something the matter… team mate?” Seanagh shook her head bringing her back to reality and walked up the final few stairs. She looked around to make sure no one was listening before she spoke.

“It’s just um…” Of all the people she had told, right now just Vanessa, Richard and her parents, Jenson was by far the hardest. “There is no Sebastian and me anymore if you catch my drift” Jenson looked at her wide eyed and covered his open mouth with his hand.

“Bloody hell… Seanagh I’m really sorry. Jeez” Jenson knew about them being in Japan early for their anniversary, he was one of the handful of people that did. “Do you have a flight home?”

“No, Sebastian cancelled the flight to Moscow and just booked one for himself to head back to Switzerland” Jenson shook his head and pulled out his phone from his pocket.

“Grab your things and I’ll try to get you on my flight to Monaco. You can stay at mine tonight and fly home tomorrow, is that okay?” She was stunned by the very sudden and kind gesture. Jenson didn’t wait for an answer and already had went off into his room and started making phone calls.

 

Jenson was more than relieved that evening when he arrived at the airport with all the last minute paperwork _and_ one spare seat for Seanagh to have on the flight. He could only imagine how she was feeling right now, Jenson might not have liked that fact Seanagh and Seb had been in a relationship but she was happy, which was the main thing. Now he was going to attempt to book her the earliest flight from Nice to Edinburgh so she could be home with her family as soon as possible.

“You just head on, I’ll be there in a minute” Seanagh sheepishly followed Jenson’s instructions as he already had his mobile glued to his ear again. “Yes hello, I need to know all of the times of all the flights from Nice to Edinburgh tomorrow, doesn’t matter how much the tickets cost”

 

Despite the fact the small private jet was quite full as Jenson had mentioned, it was mainly full of drivers which in Seanagh’s mind wasn’t so bad. She was sat with Dan and Jev with her hands hugging a small polystyrene cup filled with steaming tea, while everyone else was drinking something quite a bit stronger.

“So, your brother’s a champion now too huh?” Dan asked after another slug at his beer, Jev and Seanagh looked at the Australian confused. As far as they were concerned Seanagh’s brother was a photography student at Edinburgh University, unless he had taken up racing on the sly under a false identity.

“I think you mean her _cousin_ ” Jev corrected after some thought.

“Huh?”

“Jolyon’s Seanagh cousin, not her brother. You idiot”

“How am I supposed to know when they both look _and_ sound the same?” Jev sighed and took the bottle of beer from Dan’s hands.

“I think you’ve had enough of that Daniel” He walked away with a very whiny Dan following. It made Seanagh smile as a much more sober Jenson took their place.

“Those two huh?” Seanagh just shook her head and scratch the back of her neck. “I’ve managed to book you on a flight from Nice to Edinburgh tomorrow evening. It’s late but the only direct one going” Seanagh didn’t care as long as it meant seeing her family.

“No late is better actually, how much do I owe you?”

“Nothing”

“But-”

“No buts, it’s the least I could do” He stood up and grabbed something from the overhead locker. “Now get some rest, you look exhausted” Jenson kissed Seanagh’s temple without anyone noticing. “I’ll try and make sure this lot keep quiet” How that was going to be possible on a flight with Eddie Jordan _and_ David Coulthard was anyone’s guess.

 

“Hey is-”

“Shhh”

“Sorry, is everything alright?” DC asked in a dramatic hushed whisper, pointing at where Seanagh was now sleeping.

“Yeah she’s okay” Jenson looked over his shoulder once before sitting down.

“Are you sure, she’s been unusually quiet the whole weekend” Everyone peered over where they were sat to try and get a look at the sleeping driver, but it was no use as Seanagh was completely out of view.

“Look it seems personal alright! I didn’t want to pry” They left it that and all had their own quiet conversations before the majority of them went to have a few hours of shut eye before they landed in Nice. Sadly for Seanagh, when Jenson had passed her seat it didn’t look like she was having the sweetest of dreams.

 

_Tuesday 7 th October – Driver’s Hotel, Sochi_

_“Come in, what do you want Seb? We just got here” He cautiously walked into the hotel room and didn’t bother to take off his jacket, implying that he didn’t intend to stay for long. “Seb?” He sighed and looked out of Seanagh’s hotel room window, attempting to admire the view._

_“I uh… don’t really want to keep this long”_

_“Okay… look if it’s about Ferrari then I’ve told you I’m okay with it” Seanagh took a step towards Seb and he just took a step back away from her._

_“It’s not about Ferrari… well it is, kind of”_

_“Alright…” Seanagh looked at her boyfriend and wait for him to speak._

_“I really didn’t want to do this but… given the fact I’m going to Ferrari I don’t think we can be together anymore” A small breath caught in the back of Seanagh’s throat and she coughed loudly, Seb instinctively rushed to her side to see that she was alright._

_“What are you talking about Seb?”_

_“Look, you’re probably going to still be at McLaren next year in some capacity. And are Ferrari really going to be so understanding when they don’t exactly see eye-to-eye with McLaren” Seanagh knew relations weren’t exactly great, especially since spy-gate. It seemed they both held a grudge on the sly._

_“I…”_

_“Seanagh I’m so sorry, but… this really is for the best for the both of us” But why, Seanagh asked herself, did it have to be now. Why so soon after their anniversary if he had already felt like this. Just why?_

_“Seb” Her voice cracked and that alone caused Seb to softly whimper a goodbye before he left Seanagh’s hotel room._


	54. Race 19: Abu Dhabi 2014

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some things won, some things lost...

_Thursday 20 th November – Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi_

Press days were never usually so testing, but when it finally got announced that Fernando Alonso was leaving Ferrari and that Seb was taking his place, the international media went crazy and suddenly everyone wanted to know how Seanagh and Jenson felt about possibly losing her seat (the Former King of Spain informally announcing Fernando’s McLaren move didn’t exactly help) – as if Seanagh wanted reminded about McLaren’s plan for the future that she might not even be a part of. In her mind the sooner she got back to her hotel the better. She was a hundred metres away from her rental car when heavy footsteps were close behind her. Knowing the footsteps were someone wanting to see her she turned round and sighed at the sight of her team mate.

“What do you want Jenson?” The last person she wanted to see, her team mate – the person she was fighting against to stay in Formula One.

“Can we talk, in private?” She briefly contemplated the offer before nodding and following Jenson back into the paddock. “It’s not really a talk, I just really need to show you something” They both smiled at the cleaning staff that were still in the building as they ascended the stairs towards the drivers rooms.

“It won’t take long will it?”

“Not at all” She could tell that Jenson knew she didn’t want to be here right now. He opened the door to Seanagh’s room and her eyes met a sea of pictures, all special moments from Seanagh’s career at McLaren, there was one picture from Hungary last year that caught her eye.

“Wow” Her eyes were locked on the picture – her and Jenson grinning while wearing their rocket red victory shirts. “This is amazing” She turned and smiled at Jenson for the first time in days.

“They did the same for me, it’s affectionate even by Ron’s standards” Seanagh’s smile faded and she crossed her arms.

“I need to get going. I’ll see you at this dinner thing yeah?” She clenched her jaw and brushed past Jenson on her way out the door, not even looking back at him like she usually would.

“Yeah I’ll see you later”

 

“I’ve just had enough Mikey, I want to know. How hard is that for Ron to understand? We can’t take it anymore, Seanagh and me and barely be in the same room with all this tension. I can’t stand it, it’s not good for the team at all” Jenson stubbornly stayed sat in his car looking at the restaurant where the team had organized a pre-race race weekend barbeque.

“You can’t at least _try_ and put it behind you?”

“Mikey I am trying, my patience is just wearing incredibly thin” Jenson sighed and ran a hand across his face. “What’s the point of all this anyway?”

“It’s to try and lighten the mood” Jenson scoffed now wanting to be even further for the restaurant than he did two seconds ago. Being with the guys from the team was fine, just not the bosses constantly pulling excuses as to why they hadn’t decided on their driver line-up (or to put it more accurately who would be Fernando’s team mate next season).

“If it helps your mood Ron isn’t coming”

“Not his thing I presume” Jenson muttered before getting out the car to Mikey’s surprised who joined him a few seconds later. “I’ll put on my best smile how about that?” He approached the door and gave his name to a waiter who led him and Mikey to the back of the restaurant and out onto the terrace where a very large barbeque was smoking away with a drinks bar alongside – where his team mate was sat with her physio laughing at something. He forced himself to walk to the bar and ordered a drink trying to ignore his team mate, but he could smell her perfume and she had already said hello to him. “Hi” He gave the smallest of smiles and went to find a table at the other end of the terrace.

 

“Vanessa just change the subject please, I don’t really want to speak to him so just drop it” Seanagh glanced over at her team mate’s table before looking back at her physio. Vanessa crossed her arms and sighed.

“Like it or not you need to, we’re still fighting for fifth in the constructors and we need you two at least speaking to each other to make that possible”

“There’s double points this weekend, he can manage fine on his own” She turned round and walked out of the terrace and went to the bathroom and locked herself in for a few minutes to try and calm down. Seanagh had really felt the pressure on her side of the garage ever since Belgium, worrying about her position in the team and whether or not she’d be driving next season took its toll on everything, it was a wonder Sebastian had put up with her for so long. Seb, another person whose plans she was no longer involved with, it wouldn’t have been so bad if she didn’t have to see and hear about him almost every weekend.

“Seanagh, we’re doing a toast. If you don’t come out I’m kicking this door down” Vanessa interrupted Seanagh’s wallowing and she reluctantly left the bathroom and was handed a glass of some sort of beverage and was pushed to the front of the crowd right next to Jenson.  They shared an awkward look as Matt the head of PR lead a brief toast; how tough the past year had been, what a good job everyone had done, and what amazing drivers they had in Jenson and Seanagh. Even she could feel Jenson tense up at that. After the toast Jenson placed his hand on Seanagh’s arm and spun her round while discretely whispering in her ear.

“I need to speak to you, right now” She allowed Jenson to lead her off the terrace to the rooftop part of the restaurant that was surprisingly empty. Jenson sat down at a table next to the stunning view and Seanagh sat down opposite him with her hands clenched in her lap. “There’s something about us and Abu Dhabi” He spoke out at the skyline before turning to face her. “We never seem to get on well here” Any eavesdroppers would have thought he was referring to McLaren’s performance, but Seanagh knew Jenson was referring to their relationship as team mates. Seanagh laughed nervously and looked down at her hands trying to forget about the last time they were in Abu Dhabi.

“No Jenson I don’t think we do”

“Then what are we going to do about it, team mate?” At the use of his nickname for her Seanagh looked up and the look on his face had softened from the scowl he had walking up the stairs.

“You’re the lead driver you tell me” Jenson laughed and stood up and leaned over the glass barrier looking out at Abu Dhabi’s many skyscrapers.

“We’ve changed in this past year. I’m beginning to wonder if it’s for the best”

“Jense…” Seanagh went to stand up and froze when Jenson looked at her again.

“I’ve had enough of this” He gestured to the two of them with his left hand. “The tension, the awkward conversations. We both need to grow up and just ignore all of this for now” If this had been a year ago Seanagh would have stormed off to Seb or Mia to complain, but Jenson was right in the fact they had both changed.

“You’re right” Seanagh stood up and walked over to Jenson leaving what she deemed to be an appropriately sized gap between them. “I’m willing to put this seat nonsense behind me” Seanagh extended her hand and allowed Jenson to shake it. “I think we should be going downstairs, don’t you?” This time Seanagh led the way and slinked off to the bar to get her and Jenson another drink. “Let’s try and get a good result, shall we?” She held up her glass to Jenson’s in their own toast and they clinked their glasses with a smile, hoping that the coming weekend would bring them both better things.

 

_Friday 21 st November – Free Practice 1_

“I’m beginning to wonder if you’re trying to steal my job Jenson” Matt came through to the main hospitality area and sat down at Jenson’s table next to Mikey.

“Well considering my car’s a bit poorly I can’t do much else” Jenson huffed as he posted another tweet about the opposition’s lap times, he had really try and restrain himself and not say something offensive about the new double points rule. “Should be fixed for FP2 though… hopefully. Seanagh’s promised to take notes for me about the new front wings” At the mention of his team mate she came into view on the FOM feed, giving the camera a wave and a small smile.

“I hope those engineers can make a choice on at least _that_ ” Matt shook his head and rose from his seat. “I should be getting back to the PR office, there’s probably about fifty more journalists asking about our drivers for next season…”

 

“So I was thinking of adding an extra click on the front wing for the final sector, but apart from that everything seems fine…” Seanagh glanced around as she walked into the team building looking for Jenson. “I’ll be right back, we can go through my notes over lunch. Jenson!” She ran a finger round the collar of her nomex fireproofs in a feeble attempt to let out the heat and approached Jenson’s table where we was chatting with Mikey over lunch.

“Hey there team mate, how was the car?”

“Fine, how was your live tweeting?” Jenson smirked and nudged out a chair for her to sit on. “Richard told me”

“Hmmm and apparently I’m out for Matt’s job” Seanagh laughed and leaned against the offered chair, deciding not to make any jokes about job stealing in case they were taken in bad taste. “Do you have those notes on the front wings you promised?”

“Yeah I do, I just need to run through the setup with Mark and have some lunch and then we can talk about it. Speaking of which I best be off, see you guys later” Seanagh smiled at the two men before spinning round on her toes toward Vanessa who was already carrying their lunch on two pristine white plates.

 

_Saturday 22 nd November – Qualifying_

Seanagh sped back to the garage after her post qualifying interviews. She had failed to make Q3 (unlike Jenson) and was keen to find out the result first hand from her engineers in the garage.

“How’s it going?” Seanagh looked up at the screen and bit on her thumbnail as the seconds of the final qualifying session counted down to zero.

“Eighth” Mikey shrugged and scratched his neck. “Could be better”

“Could be worse” Seanagh gave an equally nonchalant shrug and placed her hands on her hips. “Tell Jenson I’ll see him in the debrief”

 

After the engineering debrief and any outstanding interviews, both McLaren drivers went back to their hotel in separate cars with their families, Jenson had his Mum and sisters there for support while Seanagh was joined by her Dad, cousin Jolyon and her Uncle Jonathan. The two parties happened to walk into the hotel at the same time and found themselves both waiting for lifts. Naturally Jenson’s Mum and Seanagh’s Dad started a conversation to break any awkward tension.

“Should be interesting for tomorrow, I heard the Red Bull’s had been pulled to scrutineering when we left”

“Oh, what for?”

“Over flexible front wings” Seanagh and Jenson accidentally replied in unison and both looked at the carpet as they did.

“I think it would be best if we took the stairs” Jonathan patted his son on the shoulder and grabbed the attention of his niece. “Come on love” Seanagh looked at Jenson briefly just as the Button’s all piled into the lift that had just arrived, while the Palmer’s all trudged up         three flights of beige carpeted stairs.

 

_Sunday 23 rd November – Abu Dhabi Grand Prix_

“What happened to the Red Bulls?” Nico asked looking down the grid, expecting to see an all blue and purple third row when instead he saw a McLaren and a Toro Rosso.

“Excluded from quali thanks to illegal front wings, they’ve changed them now and they’re starting from the pits. Hopefully nothing to worry about” Nico’s engineer patted his shoulder and give his driver a reassuring smile. “You’ve got enough to worry about already. Just concentrate on your own race, okay?”

“Okay” Nico nodded and took off his cap, exchanging it for his balaclava and race helmet.

 

_“And the final few cars are lining up at the back of the grid, the five red lights are coming on now for the start of this title deciding Grand Prix… and it’s lights out and away we go and Hamilton has had a rocket start while Rosberg on the other hand has a terrible start as they go into turn one Hamilton leads with Rosberg by a second already! Further down the grid it seems to all be as it was… but wait there’s been contact between a Force India and one of the McLaren’s, I think it’s Palmer and Hulkenberg…”_

 

“Guys check the car I might have damage”

“Copy, copy we’re having a look. You just keep your head down and focus on your race we’ll worry about the rest” Her engineer’s words did little to comfort Seanagh as she was already beginning to imagining the handling of her car already starting to change as she dropped a few placed down the order.

 

After the awful start it seemed that Nico’s race was going from bad to much, much worse. At just under half distance Nico locked up and ran wide loosing yet more time to Lewis, and the lap after that he felt a sudden loss in engine power and he started to drop down the field like a stone over the next few laps.

“Okay Nico we need you to turn the engine down, we’ve has an ERS failure. Repeat, ERS failure turn the engine down” He changed the settings on his steering wheel and nestled down in his seat, any title hopes he’d had before the start of the race had now evaporated into the desert air with Lewis set to score fifty wonderful points as it seemed he was still in the lead.

Towards the back end of the race it was becoming almost impossible to keep the car on track as Nico’s brakes were now starting to overheat due to the failing recovery system failing. “Box this lap Nico, box this lap we have too many problems” His engineer sounded as defeated as Nico felt, but despite everything Nico still had his pride.

“No I want to finish”

“Alright then just keep it together, two laps left”

For Nico the title deciding race ended in fourteenth place and a completely fried engine with his team mate now a two time world champion, he got out of the car and after being weighed went to the team hospitality to get changed before rushing over to the podium cool down room in the hope he would get there before the trophy presentation.    For once it seemed lady luck was on his side and he walked into the podium cool down room, which was enough to cause the colour to drain from Toto’s face. Nico held up one of his hands – a gesture that meant he came in peace - and cautiously approached his team mate who was just as surprised to see Nico there.

“Congratulations” Nico held out his hand and Lewis smiled, taking it and placing his other hand on Nico’s shoulder, a gesture which Nico himself mirrored.

“Thanks man, next year yeah?” Nico was almost certain he saw Toto almost faint at Lewis’s words.

“Yeah bring it on”

 

Seanagh sighed as she walked back into the garage with her head held as low as possible, before she could apologise Mark spoke first and placed a hand on his driver’s shoulder.

“Don’t apologise, the incident wasn’t your fault. And despite everything we are all so proud of you. I don’t know what’s going to happen with management, but it’s been an honour to be your race engineer these past two seasons” Seanagh just about cried when Jenson stepped in and hugged Seanagh as tightly as he could.

“Hey, no tears. You and me will set the whole garage off” Seanagh nodded and took a step back and smoothed down her hair. “It’s been fun… team mate” Jenson too looked on the edge of crying as she spoke, his voice also wavering slightly. They hugged again – this one caught on camera for the world to see – and they gave each other an optimistic smile before walking in opposite directions for their post-race duties. Their families however stayed at the back of the garage, sharing sympathetic smiles at that now the season was over, the talk of contracts was now beginning.

 

“You go downstairs, I’ll be out in a minute” Vanessa left Seanagh’s driver room closing the door behind her almost silently. Seanagh sat down on the floor with her back against the wall taking in the sight of all the pictures around her detailing her two seasons at McLaren that had resulted in one pole position, a win, two other podiums and well over a hundred points, along with a broken heart that Seanagh still didn’t quite know what to do with or how to fix.

“Seanagh you still here?” She smiled at the sound of her team mate and puller herself up off the floor.

“You can come in, the door’s open” Jenson sheepishly walked in with what looked like a helmet in a bag under his arm, he closed the door behind him and sighed. “Hi”

“Hi, I have something for you. I wanted to give it to you before you ran off” He walked over and placed it down on the massage table. “What an awful lot of pictures” The mood between them had changed a lot in Thursday; it seemed that now after the race was over the two drivers were a soppy sentence away from crying.

“At least they’re all happy ones” Seanagh sighed as she pulled the helmet out of its protective bag and Seanagh let out a small gasp. “Oh Jense…” He turned round and a small smile appeared in his face.

“I know we did the exchange thing on Thursday, but I wanted you to have a pink one as well” Seanagh smiled as she spun the helmet round and read a message that was scrawled on the back I the middle of the Union Jack.

_‘Thanks for the past two years, I’ll never forget you team mate – Jenson’_

“I should go, my flight back to Monaco leaves in a couple of hours. And I don’t want either of us to start crying” They shared one final hug before Jenson went to leave. “I’ll see you around then”

“Yeah… see you whenever”

“Have a nice winter”

“I’ll try” Jenson closed the door and Seanagh went to put the helmet away when she felt something tickle her hand. She turned the helmet upside down and pulled out an A5 sized envelope from the helmet with her name written carefully in Jenson’s handwriting. Seanagh placed the helmet back in its bag and carefully opened the envelope – pulling out a carefully folded letter.

 

_Hey,_

_I’m sorry I couldn’t say this to you face-to-face, this weekend has been tough for both of us and I don’t think I’d be able to say everything I wanted without welling up!_

_I want you to know that I am so proud to have been able to call you my team mate over the last two years, we’ve fallen out a few times but despite all of that you are the best team mate I’ve ever had. I will never forget how much you helped me at the start of this year, and I don’t think I will ever be able to thank you enough._

_I wish it wasn’t us fighting for that second seat (and to be honest I’ve hated it ever since Eric told us). And I hope that one day we can both put everything behind us, and maybe even properly call each other friends_

_See you soon,_

_Jenson_

 

Mia watched from her balcony as the post-race celebrations looked to continue well into the early hours. Her race had almost ended in a puff of smoke, it was almost as if her season had finished as it had started. But despite all of that she was feeling positive that next season with Mercedes engines was going to be better, much better. After a few minutes if silence Mia was startled by someone knocking at her door, after composing herself she went to answer it and was surprised to see Nico standing on the other side.

“What are you doing here?”

“You are the third person to ask me that today. Can I come in to speak to you for a minute?”

“Sure” Mia let Nico in and closed the door behind him and watched as he headed out onto the balcony.

“Lovely view”

“Yeah… Nico?” Mia waited until he was in earshot before continuing with her question. “How come you’re here instead of celebrating with the team?”

“I want Lewis to enjoy it… before I beat him next year of course”

“Of course” Mia smirked and leaned against the balcony, the pair stayed silent for a few minutes simply enjoying each other’s company. “So…” Mia spoke after a little while crossing her arms across her chest. “Any particular reason _why_ you came here to see me” Nico just smiled and turned to face her.

“Remember our conversation in Singapore, when I said I wanted to talk to you about something after Abu Dhabi”

“Yeah I remember”

“Well it’s after Abu Dhabi now…” Nico gently place a hand on one of Raven’s shoulders, and leaned down to gently kiss her.


	55. When McLaren (finally) Made Up Their Mind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A changing of the guard

_Wednesday 3 rd December – Edinburgh_

Jenson yawned as he walked through the arrivals hall at Edinburgh airport, already on the lookout for a cup of coffee. He bought one from a self-service stand and took a quick sip before taking out his phone to order a taxi to take him to his hotel. After a ten minute wait Jenson was on his way to the city centre hotel where he would be staying for a couple of nights before jetting back to Monaco, that was assuming the McLaren board hadn’t made a driver decision by then.

“So, are you here for the big event in Princes Street Gardens tomorrow Mr Button?”

“Yes, that’s right. The Johnnie Walker show run”

“Yeah that’s the whisky isn’t it? You know I’ve never been a fan of whisky, which considering my nationality is quite surprising” Jenson gave a small smile at the taxi drivers break in national stereotype. “Hey is that team mate of yours going to be there, at the event tomorrow? I was thinking of taking my daughter. She’s a huge fan of hers, and well to quote her ‘Jenson’s not that bad either’”

“Yeah Seanagh’s gonna be there” Jenson hadn’t seen or spoke to her since the post-race factory debrief, and given the fact that the contract situation hadn’t yet been sorted – he wasn’t sure how seeing her was going to go.

 

“Morning Mum, morning Dad, good morning baby brother!” Seanagh went onto the tips of her toes to ruffle Will’s hair before kissing her Dad’s cheek and helping herself to some toast and cereal.

“How are you this morning sweetheart?”

“Fine, can’t wait for the show run, apparently I’m driving the P1 today” Seanagh grinned and added some dried cranberries to her muesli.

“I saw Jenson in arrivals yesterday” Seanagh’s Mum added half a teaspoon of sugar to her tea before sitting down at the kitchen island counter.

“Well considering you work at the BA desk it’s not that surprising. You didn’t speak to him did you?”

“No I was in the middle of dealing with someone who lost their baggage” Conversation about airport baggage handling and various other things continued for another half hour before Seanagh and Will took the tram to Princes Street, their parents set to join them in about an hour or so when the event actually started.

 

“Good morning Seanagh, lovely to see you. This must be your brother” One of the event organisers eagerly shook Seanagh’s hand and lead her and Will to a portakabin right in the middle of the gardens. “Now Jenson and Mika are already here, they’re having a quick bite to eat so if you want you can keep warm in there while we get the cars and barriers set up”  They left as quickly as they arrived and Will went in first greeting Jenson and Mika with a warm smile and a quiet ‘good morning’.

“Hey there Will it’s nice to see you, this is some Finnish bloke they found somewhere…” Jenson introduced Will and Mika as Seanagh walked in; the pair looked at each other before quickly hugging. “You get in alright?”

“Yeah fine, you?”

“Fine, the hotel’s lovely. Got a lovely view of the castle” Seanagh hummed and bounced up on her toes. “It’s nice to see you”

“It’s nice to see you too Jense”

 

The show run, or event or whatever it had officially been called had been deemed a success by the PR crew that were there, and the reasonably large turnout in crowd numbers plus BBC Scotland news crew seemed to confirm that. Mika left to catch his flight back to Nice while Seanagh and Jenson hung around for a quick catch up, slowing walking down the tarmac path they had driven on not even an hour before.

“I spoke to your parents today” Jenson said out of the blue.

“Oh?”

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure your Mum invited me round for dinner”

“Oh gosh…” Seanagh let out some nervous laughter “I’m so sorry”

“No, no it’s fine. It uh… might make a change from hotel food. If that would be alright with you of course”

“Well it would stop Mum from constantly asking about you”

“She doesn’t does she?” Seanagh nodded with a small grimace. “Funny because my Mum is always asking about you”

“Well of you give me a ring at six if you want to come over, Mum and Dad should have something ready around seven” Jenson nodded and placed his hands in his pockets trying to keep them warm. “You haven’t heard anything from Ron have you?”

“No, have you?”

“No” With an exchange in shrugs and sighs Seanagh and Jenson parted ways to get out of the cold.

 

_Wednesday 10 th December – Woking_

After a process that had felt like five years rather than five months, another board meeting had finally resulted in a driver decision that was going to keep the shareholders, Ron and the race team all happy. While it was going to be difficult given the situation they all felt as if they had agreed on the best possible solution for everyone involved.

“Well now that is finally settled, I can finally call Honda and inform them of our decision” Ron stated already marching towards his office.

“Surely it would be in better taste to tell the drivers first” Eric Boullier and Johnathan Neale both shared a look that silently said neither of them really wanted to make those two phone calls.

“Well then Eric you can call the drivers, and Jonathan you can call their managers. Matt can you organise a press event for tomorrow morning? Around eleven o’clock if you can” The head of PR nodded and rushed to his department. “Then I believe everything is – finally – settled”

 

Jenson returned to his Monte Carlo apartment after his early afternoon bike ride contemplating whether or not to have his lunch before or after his shower. He had decided for after but was distracted by his mobile ringing on the coffee table, and answered it without looking at the caller ID.

“Hello?”

“Ah good afternoon Jenson, it’s Eric”

 

“Seanagh! Seanagh wait!”

“What is it Mum?” She was about to go out for a run to meet Will from his Christmas job when she saw her Mum standing in the hallway holding the house phone tightly in her hand.

“It’s McLaren” Seanagh took the phone hastily and went into the empty living room closing the door behind her and leaning against it for good measure.

 

Mary found herself pacing up and down the hallway waiting for her daughter to emerge after what had now been twenty minutes of almost complete silence. And on today of all days her husband was late home from work.

“There you are!” She hugged Mark before he was completely through the door.

“What’s the matter Mary?”

“Seanagh got that phone call from McLaren”

“Oh god” He slammed the front door shut and hung his coat and scarf on one of the coat hooks. At that moment Seanagh emerged from the living room looking downbeat and slightly red-eyed. Mentally their family had prepared for the worst, Mark especially.

“I um…” She placed the phone back on the receiver and scratched her neck looking down at her grey and black odd socks. “I’m their reserve driver for next year” Without saying another work Mark and Mary hugged their daughter tightly, vowing to be there for her over the next twelve months, with the extra promise that things would start to look up eventually – even if neither of them weren’t so sure of that themselves.

 

_Thursday 11 th December – McLaren Technology Centre_

“And now it gives me a great pleasure to introduce our race drivers for the 2015 season; World Champions Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button, and our reserve driver; Grand Prix winner Seanagh Palmer. Who will be supported here at the factory by our test drivers Kevin Magnussen and Stoffel Vandoorne”

 

“Well, it is nice to finally know who I will be working with” Fernando clapped his hands and briefly looked at his new team mates before grabbing a bag out of his shiny new locker.

“Yeah you and me both mate” Jenson folded his arms and awkwardly shuffled his feet.

“Do either of you have any plans for the winter?”

“What’s left of it” Seanagh scoffed before smoothing out her knee length black dress. “My family seem desperate to take me on holiday somewhere” Fernando seemed to take a genuine interest as he waited to put on his coat. “They haven’t told me where though, only that it’s warm and very far away” Fernando hummed and put his jacket on, zipping it up to the base of his chin.

“Well, I hope you both have a nice holiday. And I will see you in January ready to start work” Fernando smiled warmly at the two Brits before rushing out the door, leaving Jenson and Seanagh by themselves.

“I should probably get going too. If I leave now I’ll make the half two train from Euston” Seanagh hastily pulled on her jacket and grabbed her bag and went to leave when Jenson gently placed a hand on her arm.

“Before you rush off, I just want to speak to you for a minute” Seanagh nodded and adjusted her stance, her eyes going from the lapels of Jenson’s suit jacket to his blue-grey eyes. “We’re going to be alright aren’t we? You know I don’t want things between us to go… bad”

“I um… I just need some time to myself Jenson. I’m not mad at you but I just really need to be away from everything for a little bit”

“Yeah. Right, of course”

“I’ll see you in January. Have a nice Christmas Jenson” She smiled and softly kissed his cheek, unknowingly leaving her hand on his arm for a few moments. “Take care of yourself”

“You too, see you in January”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So after the next chapter goes up (which will hopefully be next weekend) I'll be going on hiatus until mid-December as I'm starting my second year of university in just over a week's time and I really want to concentrate on that as my course has a very heavy workload. I really hope you can understand my decision as I fell it's for the best both for my writing and for myself.


	56. Hawaii

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So as I said on the last chapter, I'm going on a break from writing until mid-December so I can focus on my University work this semester. I'll still be around to reply to comments and such, but until then I'll be back with another chapter in December.

_Monday 15 th December – Hawaiian Islands_

_“Ladies and gentlemen if you could please fasten your seatbelts, and move your seats into the upright position as we are about to begin our descent into Honolulu International”_

 

“Oh lighten up you lot, you could all look a little happier for people who have just landed in paradise!”

“Sorry for being tired after a 21 hour journey!” Will yawned and looked around his surroundings in baggage reclaim. Given the fact it was nine in the evening it was surprisingly busy, with a good two hundred people milling around waiting on their bags. One face caught Will’s eye but he shook his head and put it down to seeing things due to exhaustion. Because there was no way _that person_ would be in the same airport, on the same island they were in, at the exact same time.

After half an hour Will and his family had their suitcases and were in their rental car driving to the villa they had rented out for their holiday. Seanagh had already fallen asleep on the back seat and her head had lolled over so it was leaning against the window. After everything that had happened in the past few months he was relieved that his big sister was finally getting some time away from everything, even if it was just for a week.

 

Seanagh woke the next morning in a double bed with soft white cotton sheets, the side of her face warm from the sunshine seeping through the open curtains of her window. There was also the incredibly loud noise of her ringtone coming from her bedside table.

“Do you have any idea what time it is?” Seanagh answered her phone without properly looking at the caller ID.

“Um it’s eight in the evening. You’re not asleep already are you?”

“Mia…” Seanagh groaned and sat up pushing her messy hair out of her face. “I just woke up; in fact you calling just woke me up. What do you want?”

“You’ve just _woken up_ , where the hell are you?”

“I’m in Hawaii, on holiday remember?”

“Ohh… right” Seanagh sighed and flopped back down onto her pillow. “Look it’s nothing important. Just call me when you’re back in the UK yeah? Have a nice holiday”

“Thanks Mia. Speak to you soon” Seanagh placed her phone back on the bedside table and stretched her arms above her head with a wide yawn. She slowly got out of bed and went over to the small window that looked out onto the sea and saw her brother on the beach already taking pictures while chatting to what looked like one of the locals.

 

Will returned just after eleven feeling very satisfied with the test photos he had taken on the beach; with a bit of luck he would be able to make a second semester portfolio out of it – there were days that he couldn’t believe he was almost at the end of the penultimate year of his degree. It was almost as astounding as the fact that he had actually ran into-

“Hey Will, get any good pictures?” Seanagh was sat at the breakfast bar with a cheery smile gently swinging her legs; he would have given a lot to be by her side in the second half of the year.

“Yeah they’re test ones but… there’s some really nice beach views. Also I wanted to check out the Valley of the Temples Memorial park at some point. That alone would make an amazing portfolio” His sister grinned, Seanagh always loved hearing about Will’s lectures and looking through all of his pictures and sometime she even helped him choose pictures to go into his portfolios.

“Well I’m glad you’ve found something for your assignment at last”

“Yeah, this whole island has so many great locations. Which, speaking about that sis…”

“You want me to model again for some don’t you?” Will hesitated before nodding his head. Seanagh drank the rest of her juice and hopped off her seat. “Let me have a quick shower and get dressed okay?” She kissed Will’s cheek and ruffled his hair before she skipped out the room quietly humming a tune to herself.

“I’m glad this is working out for the pair of you” Their Mum gave a small smile while preparing some tea for herself and their Dad. “And thank goodness we got away before the press started having their two cents on the seat matter”

“I think you mean the tabloids Mum, everyone’s really gutted at McLaren anyway. At least that’s what Jenson said”

“Really, when did he mention that?” Will’s eyes widened and he tried to make up an excuse but his brain wasn’t working fast enough thanks to the jetlag. Luckily his Dad walked in to save him from a very awkward conversation.

“Marnong” Both Will and his Mum giggled at his mispronunciation mid-yawn and watched as he almost completely missed one of the breakfast bar stools.

“Morning to you too Dad” Will looked away as their parent’s kissed and checked over his camera bags to make sure he still had all the right lenses.

“Right that’s me ready!” Seanagh returned after about twenty minutes dressed with her blue sunglasses perched on top of her head. “You all set Will?”

“Yeah, we’ll be back in about an hour. I’ve got some extra sunscreen in my bag just in case” Their parents smiled at Will and Seanagh before they darted off towards the sea.

 

Will had a look at the list he had quickly jotted down that morning to see if there were any other pictures that he needed or wanted. He looked up from his notepad and saw Seanagh looking over her shoulder towards the more expensive villas about a few hundred metres away.

“No I think that’s everything” A not so quiet rumble of his stomach also confirmed that Will needed his lunch. He pulled Seanagh up from the sand and they begin their short walk back to their own small villa. Alongside the calming sound of the ocean Will also heard the sound of someone running along the sand that seemed to be getting closer. Both he and Seanagh moved out of the way but it seemed the lone runner wasn’t looking where they were going and ran right into the back of his sister knocking himself and her to the ground. Luckily the sand was very soft so neither of them had to worry about an injury.

“Are you both alri… _oh no_ ” Will looked at the runner – whose sunglasses had been knocked off his face and he was now completely and utterly convinced that the hands of fate really seemed to hate his family and one of their particular colleagues. The runner stood up first and went to run off when Seanagh picked up his sunglasses and went to give them back when she recognised one of the runner’s tattoos on the back of their right shoulder.

“Please tell me you’re not actually here!” Jenson turned round at the sound of his team mate’s voice and had probably deliberately decided not to say anything. Seanagh threw the sunglasses at Jenson’s feet and jogged off alone. Will and Jenson both gave each other a sympathetic shrug and a sigh before heading back in their own directions – in Will’s case running after his upset sister.

 

Seanagh was glad she didn’t end up crying, if anything she was just annoyed and wanted to be back in her London flat completely and utterly alone. She walked back into the villa and gave her parents a quick ‘hello’ before dashing into her room and hiding under her bedsheets. After a little while her Dad knocked on the door and cautiously walked in and sat on the bed tightly hugging his daughter.

“There, there love… to put it in Will’s words someone up there doesn’t like you all that much” Seanagh sat up and nestled into her Dad’s hold.

“Why does everything bad always happen to me Dad?” She held back a sob and coughed instead.

“Probably best to get it all over with in one go, then everything will look up after that you’ll see. In the meantime try to forget about it. And if it makes you feel any better Jenson’s came over and apologised for all the fuss he’s caused” _Of course he would._ Seanagh thought to herself, that was a very charming Jenson thing to do.

“Can I just be alone for a minute? I’ll come down for lunch”

“Of course sweetheart” He kissed his daughters hair and quietly closed the bedroom door, leaving Seanagh to look out at the paradisal view alone with her own thoughts.

_Thursday 18 th December – Honolulu_

Jenson hated the fact he was so nervous. He checked his watch and drummed his fingers against his beige shorts letting out a long sigh. After he’d been and apologised to Seanagh’s parents he’d sent her a text asking if they could meet up to clear the air. They had agreed on a 7pm dinner at a beachside restaurant in down town Honolulu that was a ten minute walk away from their villas. At seven on the dot Seanagh arrived and was presented with a customary Hawaiian Lei flower garland (Jenson had also been given one) and stood up when she arrived at their table.

“Hey, I’m not late am I?” Seanagh asked as she sat down.

“No your punctuality record still stands team-... Seanagh” He cleared his throat after correcting himself and gave Seanagh a warm smile. “Did you get here alright?”

“Yeah fine I just walked along the beach. It’s a lovely place. I can see why we ended up here” Jenson had to laugh at their situation and continued their conversation after they ordered their food and a bottle of light rosé wine.

“I’m really sorry about the other day, I really didn’t want to make you upset”

“It’s alright; I wasn’t in the best of moods anyway considering my jetlag. I was just a bit miffed at my luck that’s all” Jenson let out a small sigh of relief. “But then again I don’t suppose they call this island ‘The Gathering Place’ for nothing now do they?” They chuckled at the irony and ate their dinner in good spirits before splitting the bill and after they went over to the bar for one quick drink they slowly walked back to their villas. After they left the restaurant Jenson spotted a bush sprouting hibiscus flowers that were the same colour as Seanagh’s white dress with a small pink centre, he carefully picked one and Seanagh blushed when he presented it to her. “What’s this for?”

“To make up for me almost ruining your holiday. Stay still for a second” Seanagh stood perfectly still while Jenson tucked the steam of the flower behind Seanagh’s ear. “There, now you look perfectly Hawaiian, plus the pink matches your flower garland” Seanagh just laughed and placed her arm through Jenson’s and they started walking along the golden sands once more.

“Thank you for inviting me out to dinner. It was nice to be able to just talk to each other for once” Jenson couldn’t remember the last time that had happened, and he was grateful for the opportunity. They had just talked and laughed and it all felt so wonderfully normal. “So are you staying here for Christmas or heading back to Monaco”

“I’m staying here, everyone else has plans” Jenson had came to Hawaii to be alone for a little while, but he hadn’t intended to feel so lonely.

“You’re spending Christmas by _yourself_?” He wasn’t shocked by Seanagh’s tone of surprise; the concept of being alone at any important event was completely alien to her. And in another awful twist of fate they arrived back at Seanagh’s villa right as Jenson confirmed his plans.  They both dropped their arms as Jenson walked Seanagh to the front door. “Are you sure you’ll be alright getting back to your place Jense?”

“Yeah it’s just a few minute down this road. I’ll be fine”

“Good, I mean we can’t have you getting swept away. I’m pretty sure that would cause Ron to lose the rest of his hair” Jenson and Seanagh hugged and they both kissed each other on the cheek goodnight. “Maybe if we’re luckily we’ll only run into each other”

“Maybe”

“Goodnight Jenson” With one bright smile Seanagh walked back into her villa and Jenson turned and walked along the road, a wide smile etched onto his face.


	57. About Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm finally back! I am so sorry about the mega pause between chapters, this semester of uni was more crazy than I thought. But I finally handed in my last assignment today which means I can start writing again! As I have an exam near the start of January I'm not sure how much I can post between now and then, but I will write as much as I can. I really hope you all enjoy this one!

_Tuesday 16 th December – Kirkcaldy, Scotland_

Mia looked at the clock on her bedside table and bit her bottom lip waiting on Seanagh to pick up the phone. This was the second time she had tried to call her and was edging closer to getting on the next train to London to see her in person.

“Do you have any idea what time it is?” Seanagh eventually answered the phone and Mia raised her eyebrow at the question.

“Um it’s eight in the evening. You’re not asleep already are you?” She did sound tired on the other end of the phone. Which was odd because 8pm was almost too early for someone to have an early night.

“Mia…” She paused and sounded like she sat up in the bed she was probably in. “I just woke up; in fact you calling just woke me up. What do you want?”

“You’ve just _woken up_ , where the hell are you?” The conversation had suddenly taken a turn for the strange.

“I’m in Hawaii, on holiday remember?”

“Ohh… right” It was then that Mia remembered briefly reading a text from Seanagh a few days ago saying that her family would be taking her to Hawaii for a break. She had been so caught up in her previous phone call that it had completely slipped her mind. “Look it’s nothing important. Just call me when you’re back in the UK yeah? Have a nice holiday”

“Thanks Mia. Speak to you soon” She felt bad for waking Seanagh up at whatever time in the morning it was in Hawaii and set her phone down on the bed beside her crossed legs. Mia suddenly felt very unsure of what to do; when her and Seanagh had lived together they traded any sort of advice over breakfast. But now she was living in Oxford that got a bit harder, especially since Mia needed her friend’s advice more than ever.

Nico had called just a few minutes before if she wanted to talk about things. ‘Things’ meaning the fact they had confessed their feelings for each other after kissing in Abu Dhabi, but Mia almost being swept away in surprise had decided that she needed time to think a few things over. Not that she felt she needed to because Mia would have accepted Nico in a heartbeat, but there was a small niggling in her brain telling her to just stop and think. But thinking just made everything all the more confusing.

After she’d had dinner with her parents Mia went for a shower and really thought about her situation, and without hesitation called Nico and booked an open return flight to Nice in just two days’ time.

 

_Thursday 18 th December – Monte Carlo, Monaco_

After arriving in the late afternoon, Nico had taken Mia out to lunch at one of the marina-side cafés. Both of them made polite small talk, not really knowing how to bring up what they both wanted to ask.

“You know I have never seen Monaco so quiet” Mia looked around at the still water in the half empty marina and the almost desolate streets filled with a mere handful of people. It was almost as if Mia was in a completely different Monaco to the one she had raced in just seven months previous.

“It’s like this a lot in winter, it’s really peaceful. I miss it when I’m away more than I’d like to admit” Nico smiled and moved his cutlery onto the middle of his plate; they had just paid the bill and were sat in a semi-awkward silence. “Would you like to go for a walk?” Mia smiled and nodded trying not to look too keen to leave as she left the café and took in a deep breath of fresh air as her and Nico slowly walked by the marina.

“I hope that I’m not being a bother by staying the spare room?”

“No not at all, but if staying in a hotel would be better for you I’m sure there will be some spare rooms somewhere…”

“No, no. Your place is just fine. Speaking of which… I really need to get something off my chest” They were a few feet away from a wooden bench which Mia walked over to and sat down before taking in a deep breath. “I haven’t really stopped thinking about what you said to me in Abu Dhabi. And I do feel the same way, I’m just scared…”

“Scared of what?” Nico sounded concerned and sat down on the bench next to Mia with his eyebrows knotted in confusion.

“Of you getting in the way of my career, the second the press find out they’d-”

“Mia, Amelia. Calm down for a second. The last thing I would want to do is get in the way of your racing, and second we don’t have to be public about anything if it’s not something either of us are comfortable with”

“Really?” Mia felt a heavy weight being lifted off her shoulders and she smiled.

“Really” Nico returned her smile with a small nod and gently placed his hand on hers. “So are you going to ask or am I?”

“Well it’s about time one of us did” Mia and Nico both laughed and stood up from the bench, and continued their walk down the marina holding hands. “So”

“So…” They paused after a little while of silence and smiled at the sight of their entwined hands. “I guess this is us then?” Mia grinned at the thought of an ‘us’ and hummed before looking back up at Nico.

“’Us?’ Does this mean I can call you my boyfriend too?” Nico knew Mia was just teasing and simply offered her his best charming grin.

“You can call me whatever you want, within reason of course” They shared a chaste kiss before continuing on with their walk.

“That sounds absolutely perfect”


	58. Small Revelations and Quiet Celebrations

_Wednesday 7 th January 2015 – Edinburgh_

Jenson very quietly hummed to himself as he stood in the small queue counting the coins in his hand, making sure he had enough for his pre-planned purchase.

“Hi, one medium caramel hot chocolate and one medium matcha latte please” Jenson smiled at the familiar barista who accepted Jenson’s loose change and made both drinks in a flurry. “Thanks Will” Jenson smiled at Seanagh’s younger brother before he dived into the staff room to collect his things, namely his camera bag.

“See you Friday boss!” Will waved at the person who had taken his place at the till and opened the entrance door wide for Jenson as he led him towards Prince’s Street gardens. “I am so glad I’ve got tomorrow off”

“I’ll bet” Jenson looked around himself, paranoid that he had already been noticed in the five hours he had been in the city. “So do you like your job then?”

“Well it’s better working for a local business than for a big chain, and being a student the money _really_ helps” Will chuckled and lightly patted his camera bag before the pair crossed the road and entered the gardens. “I’d ask if you like your job but I think we all know the answer to that” Jenson smiled and took a small sip of his coffee.

“Well, it has its good moments I guess…” After walking for about five minutes they finally met Seanagh who was sat on a small wooden bench with her arms crossed tightly across her chest.

“Hey!” She stood up and smiled warmly at both of them.

“We would have been here sooner but _someone_ had to make a fancy pants order” Will joked as he set his camera bag down on the bench and began to set up his camera. Seanagh just smirked at Jenson who shrugged.

“I have no idea what he’s on about, there you go” Once Jenson had a free hand he moved his dark sunglasses onto the top of his head and smiled down at his colleague. “How are we?”

“I’m fine, yourself?”

“I’m good; I even got a _private taxi_ to your parents’ place this morning” Jenson replied looking jokingly smug.

“You mean my Mum’s Seat?... Will told me” Seanagh laughed at Jenson’s overplayed shake of the head. Before Jenson could reply Will deliberately stood in between the two of them.

“Come on sis, I’m only going to have the sun at this angle for an hour at best”

“Hold this for me will you” Seanagh handed her hot chocolate back to Jenson who gave her a small nod of his head.

“Yes m’lady”

“Right so if you could just sit down there and look really pensive for me then that would be great” Seanagh did as her brother instructed and rested her chin on her right hand and looked behind her brother at an angle. The pictures that Will was taking were a part of his university project, a study of his older sister in pictures. The person behind the visor or something like that. Jenson had even been in a couple of pictures with his team mate himself, he didn’t quite remember why though.

After almost forty minutes Will took a break to look at his pictures while Jenson sat with Seanagh on the bench.

“Oh shit” Will exclaimed at his phone that he had just pulled out of his pocket after receiving a text.

“What is it Will?”

“Something’s happened at work, they need me there right away, can you…”

“We’ll take your stuff back” Seanagh took the camera off her brother’s hands. “Don’t run too fast and be careful when crossing the road okay?”

“Thanks sis, love you!” Seanagh smiled as her younger brother ran off and she began to pack the camera and lens back into its bag.

“So do you want to stay here for a bit or shall we head back now?” Seanagh asked fastening up the bag. Jenson shrugged saying that he didn’t mind. “We could just finish our drinks here and then go”

“Sounds fine to me” Seanagh sat back down and took a long sip of her now warm chocolate and let out an even longer sigh. “Are you sure you’re alright with me being here tomorrow, with it being your birthday and all”

“Yes it’s fine! I’ve told you I don’t mind you being here Jense, it’s actually… it’s really nice to see you” Seanagh tapped her fingers against the coffee cup and chewed on her bottom lip. “And if it makes you feel better I have had much worse company”

“Oh, like who?” Jenson stood up to place his empty cup in the bin a few feet away.

“Well… my ex-fiancé’s parents were pretty horrendous” Seanagh scoffed as Jenson sat back down on the bench with a loud thud and a surprised expression on his face. “Shit you didn’t know about that”

“No” Jenson spoke slowly and widened his eyes, the pair sat in an awkward silence for about a minute or so, trying to think of something to say. “If it makes you feel better, you’re not the only one here who’s been there”

“Really?” The two drivers looked at each other feeling quite bemused. “Should we go?”

“Yes I think we should” Both non-verbally deciding to leave the can of worms at the bench they both stood up and left with Seanagh carrying Will’s camera bag slung over her shoulder. After about half a kilometre Seanagh dumped her empty coffee cup in the bin and placed both of her hands in her pockets and hunched up her shoulders. Once they were walking through much quieter streets the pair resumed their conversation albeit on a completely different topic.

“I should probably apologise for mentioning the fact you were spending Christmas alone to my Mum… and that she asked you over for my birthday”

“It’s alright, I’m pretty sure my Mum would do the exact same given half the chance” After another few minutes of walking they arrived back at Seanagh’s parents’ house, Seanagh let them both in and placed Will’s camera bag gently on the ground while Jenson offered to make them both a cup of tea.

“No need I’ve just put the kettle on, thanks sis!” Out of nowhere Will appeared and was already half way up the stairs with his camera looking surprisingly chipper.

“What happened to the work emergency?”

“Oh uh… it was a false alarm” Will smiled and darted up the stairs before his sister could reply.

 

 

_Thursday 8 th January_

“Happy birthday sis!” Seanagh was nudged awake by her brother gently placing a hot mug of tea on her small bedside table in an old Vodafone McLaren Mercedes mug.

“Hmph… morning Will” Seanagh flapped one of her hands at her brother in an attempt at waving before rolling over. “Thanks for the tea”

“Just keeping up the now ten year old tradition. Mum and Dad have already gone out to work but they left some stuff for your breakfast out on the table”

“Cheers” After Will left Seanagh sat up in her bed and switched on her phone, already receiving a number of birthday texts and messages from Richard, Vanessa and a few of the drivers.

_‘I am so sorry I can’t be there for your birthday! But I’m sure Jenson is a good enough stand in… have a lovely day and we’ll catch up soon, love you!’_

Seanagh smiled at the voicemail message from Mia before taking a few sips of her tea and carefully heading downstairs to see what was in order for breakfast. She slowly walked into the kitchen and smiled at the sight of Jenson making himself a cup of coffee in the kitchen.

“Morning” She sat down at the table where freshly made crepes and whipped cream had been laid out next to a bowl of strawberries.

“Good morning, happy birthday” Jenson softly kissed her on the cheek and sat down opposite her. “So how does it feel to be 26?”

“Oh stop that’s just depressing, and don’t play the ‘turning 35’ card”

“Well I wasn’t going to but now that you’ve mentioned it…” Jenson smiled before he and Seanagh both started to giggle as Will walked in.

“I feel so sorry for Fernando right now” He sighed making himself a cup of instant coffee.

“He should, we all know what happened when he was team mates with one Brit; imagine what’s going to happen when he spends a year with _two_!”

“I thought no one from McLaren ever mentioned 2007”

“What Ron can’t hear isn’t going to hurt him, you not staying for breakfast Will?” Seanagh’s brother shook his head and pulled an excuse out of the air before heading back upstairs.

“Well I guess I should thank you for making breakfast Jense” He looked at her from across the table pretending to be confused before he let out a nervous giggle.

“Let me guess me just happening to be in the kitchen was a little bit too obvious?”

“Just a little bit”

“Anyway, I hope that you have a great birthday, you deserve it” Jenson briefly raised his glass before downing the rest of his orange juice.

“Well same to you… and then it’s back to work” Both Jenson and Seanagh sighed sadly at the prospect of having to be Formula One drivers again for the year (or in Seanagh’s case reserve driver).

“Not to worry, we’ve still got the rest of today. And on a positive note… you and I are still team mates”

“That we are”

“So, after today let’s have a ruddy good year shall we?” Jenson raised his mug of coffee this time, Seanagh did the same and their pair clinked glasses to what they hoped was actually going to be a really good year.


	59. Testing Times

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nobody ever said pre-season had to go without a hitch...

_Sunday 22 nd February – McLaren Technology Centre_

Seanagh yawned as she walked through the factory towards Mission Control with an espresso in her hand. It was a few minutes past eleven and she had decided to reward herself on completing her morning sim run by going to keep an eye on how testing was going.

Despite it being about six weeks into officially being reserve driver, she had already noticed differences in the team. New pictures of the final motorhome designs had been floating around the factory showing pictures of Jenson and Fernando on the walls, not to mention that at least for the moment her weekly schedule was a lot less busy. This time last year she had already left the country twice, now she was lucky to get a glimpse of the signs for Heathrow on the M25.

“Good morning” Kevin was stood leaning against the wall outside mission control also with a small coffee cup. His blond hair was styled in its usual fashion; only now he almost had a full sleeve of black outline tattoos in various designs on the lower half of his right arm. “Have your eyes turned square yet?”

“Not yet, ask me again in March, how’s it going in there?” Seanagh sat on the floor opposite the door and Kevin joined her with a sigh.

“Oh the usual, but Fernando is supposedly on a long run at the moment. That was about half an hour ago” Seanagh just hummed and squinted her eyes at the door. “You alright?”

“Yeah, I’m just contemplating whether or not I want to know _what’s_ going on in there” Kevin just pulled a Raikkonen-esque shrug and brought up one of his knees with clasped hands.

“No one knew it was going to be this bad…”

“That’s because Honda never told us it was going to be this bad” Seanagh murmured and downed the rest of her espresso.

“Now you’re starting to sound like one of those cynical old men who always is sat at a bar”

“You only have to worry about me when I come into work with a whisky rather than coffee, anyway…” Seanagh paused and tapped her index finger against the cup. “Shall we go in?”

“Go on then…” Seanagh and Kevin binned their empty coffee cups before quietly walking into Mission control and taking seats right at the very back, they placed the head sets over one of their ears, leaving the other free in case they wanted to have a conversation. The smaller screens in front of them both showed on board footage of Fernando who was currently going around the track without any sign of mechanical problems. “Well would you look at that, the engine decided to work today” Kevin just smirked while covering his mouth with a free hand.

Another ten minutes passed and Fernando was still going round the track, there were a few pleasantly surprised murmurs when Fernando set the fifth fastest time of the morning. But after that the proverbial completely and utterly hit the fan. Just as Fernando was going through turn three, his car veered off to the inside at speed and collided with the wall, dragging itself to a stop. Yellow then red flags were waved instantly as a medical team came over, And soon enough the morning session was chequered flagged six minutes early as Fernando was driven off in the medical car.

“Holy…” Seanagh and Kevin muttered and shared a very worried look between each other and carefully slid off their radio headsets as the radio chatter came to an abrupt stop.

“I don’t want to sound awful…” Kevin leaned in and spoke quietly. “But you might want to think about packing a bag”

“I hope not” Seanagh knew that reserve driver meant the only way she was going to stand in and race again was if either Jenson or Fernando was badly injured, they weren’t the circumstances she wanted to be driving a Formula 1 car again. “I need some air” Seanagh upped and left her seat and breezed out of Mission Control with Kevin just behind her. “That just looked really, really-” Seanagh was cut off by her phone ringing in her pocket. She answered it without properly looking at the caller ID, still in shock from seeing Fernando’s crash first hand. “Hello?”

“Hello Seanagh, it’s Eric” Seanagh exhaled and looked briefly at Kevin. “I presume you know about Fernando”

“Yeah, I um… is he going to be alright?”

“We don’t know he’s at the medical centre now. But I just wanted to let you know that you are on standby, you might want to think about looking at flights”

“Okay, speak to you soon” Seanagh pressed the end call button and jammed her phone back into the pocket.

“Well?” The young Dane looked at Seanagh looking as worried as she felt. “Is it bad?”

“I’m on standby” Kevin quietly cursed under his breath and crossed his arms across his chest. “Shit” Seanagh ran her hands through her hair and let out a sigh, jumping to wild conclusions based on the small pieces of information she had.

“Let’s just go tell Stoffel, we’ll uh… worry about the rest later”

 

_Thursday 26 th February – Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya_

It seemed that Barcelona was still cold in February. Armed with a team branded sweatshirt and raincoat over her team t-shirt, Seanagh found herself sat alone in one of the grandstands near the final chicane. She had been called up to fill in for Fernando for the third and final test, as for the moment his doctors were still contemplating whether or not he would be fit enough to race in Australia in just two weeks’ time.

Unfortunately for McLaren it wasn’t looking any better on the engine front. Jenson had only completed seven laps before having more mechanical gremlins doing more harm than good. Honda did say they were going to be behind with their engine, but no one thought they were going to be _that_ far behind.

The sound of a man clearing her throat grabbed Seanagh’s attention, thinking it was someone from McLaren asking her to come back to the motorhome. Instead when Seanagh looked up she saw a Ferrari clad Sebastian standing a few feet away looking sheepish.

“What do you want?” Seanagh returned to taking notes as the afternoon session got underway.

“To talk to you, they showed you on the camera feed. I thought now would be a good time to…” His voice trailed off as Kimi drove past. Seanagh sighed and closed her notebook while clicking her pen to retract the ball point.

“Well sit down then” Sebastian kept one of the plastic grandstand seats between them, but he still sat at an angle facing his ex-girlfriend. “Dare I say it I think the red suits you” Seanagh spoke reluctantly and also partially turned to face Sebastian, whose hair was gently being wafted by the gentle breeze.

“Thank you… I’ll keep this short. I just wanted to say that I’m sorry for what I did. You deserved so much better than how I treated you when we… ended things” Sebastian scratched behind his ear and huffed, showing a clear sense of remorse at what had happened four months ago. “And I’m sorry, about you being reserve driver”

“You don’t need to apologise, you had nothing to do with it” Both Sebastian and Seanagh sighed, only the faint sound of engines filling the air. “I’m sorry I’m just-”

“Miserable?”

“Yes…” Seanagh sighed and bit down on her bottom lip. “I didn’t want to be back in F1 like this. I wanted it to be on my own merit, not with Fernando on sick leave” Sebastian shook his head and looked down at his shoes before standing up.

“I need to go, but… take care of yourself, and uh… I hope you get that engine fixed”

“Oh that’ll be nothing short of a miracle” Seanagh too stood up and followed Sebastian out of the grandstand, claiming she needed to be back at the motorhome with her team.

 

When she walked into the building Jenson was sat at one of the tables along with a headset that had been abandoned hours ago. “So what is it this time, or have they not figured it out yet?” Seanagh sat down next to Jenson and placed her notebook and pen flat on the table.

“A hydraulic leak, that’s a new one to add to the tally” Seanagh rolled her eyes and coyly wrote in the back cover of her notebook and carefully added one tally mark. “I know it’s awful, but we’re going to get driven mad this year anyway”

“So you’d rather _speed up_ the process”

“Well we might as well go fast in something…” Jenson trailed off, and looked at Seanagh whose eyes were glued to the TV screen in front of them. “You alright there team mate?” Seanagh smiled at the nickname Jenson was still intent on using and gave him a small smile.

“I’m a lot better than what I was ten minutes ago let’s put it that way”


	60. Race 1: Australia 2015

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another season gets underway down under.

_Thursday 12 th March – Albert Part, Melbourne_

“So in the first drivers’ press conference of the new season, we have Lewis Hamilton from Mercedes, Seanagh Palmer from McLaren, Daniel Ricciardo from Red Bull, Amelia Sanders from Lotus, Max Vestappen from Toro Rosso and Sebastian Vettel from Ferrari…” James Allen asked Lewis the opening question of the press conference, before quickly moving to Mia. “Amelia moving onto you now, you are _technically_ the only woman on the grid this season” Mia pulled a jokingly confused face before turning to Seanagh who was sat next to her on the back row who just shrugged. “Are you feeling the pressure this year, or will it be just another season for you?”

“Um well… for this weekend I’m not the only woman on the grid, not that it matters of course I’m still a racing driver regardless” Out of the corner of her eye Mia saw Seanagh nod with a small smile. “But to answer your question I’m not feeling any more pressure than normal. If anything I’m feeling really positive for this season, we’ve got new Mercedes engines this year which we are all hoping is going to be a good move for us in terms of performance. But as always I’ve got the best support from my team and my family, and my boyfriend as well, so hopefully I’m going to have a really good season”

“You’re also; some may see this as quite ironic, going to be working with Jolyon Palmer this year. Who is Lotus’ reserve driver and just so happens to be Seanagh’s cousin. How do you think that is going to be?” Mia let out a small laugh before answering.

“Well, it seems that Seanagh and her family have been following me for the past seven to eight years, so I’m not really surprised that I haven’t been able to escape them” The whole room seemed to erupt into laughter at Mia’s comment, and it took a good minute or so for everyone to calm down before the press conference could continue.

 

As Mia walked out of the press conference and into the bright Australian sunshine, she put her sunglasses on over her eyes smiling to herself as she walked alone trough the semi-crowded paddock.

“Afternoon” That was, until Nico came out of nowhere and was suddenly walking alongside her. “Funny I had no idea you had a boyfriend”

“Oh really…” Mia smirked before giggling. “I thought you would have noticed”

“Well I might have noticed last night that’s for sure…”

“I’m going to go before you say anything else someone might hear. Best of luck with your interviews” Mia gently placed a hand on Nico’s shoulder before smiling at him as she began to walk a little bit faster.

“I’ll see you later?”

“I’ll think about it” Mia briefly took off her sunglasses to wink at Nico before putting her sunglasses back on as she walked through the paddock with a wide smile plastered all over her face.

 

_Friday 13 th March – Driver’s Hotel_

“Evening team mate… you’re awfully cheery for a Friday” Jenson saw a very smiley Seanagh in the corridor by the door to her room clutching a small pile of data sheets in her hand. “Some paperwork for the evening?”

“Yeah, need to be ready for qualifying tomorrow” Seanagh leaned against the door already looking at the lines and graphs intently.

“Well best of luck”

“You too. Team mate”

 

_Sunday 15 th March – Albert Park_

“So Mia, how _does_ it feel to be the only woman on the grid this year?” Seanagh asked in a jokey tone, putting on her best journalist voice.

“Oh not you as well… I feel like that’s the only question I’ve been asked all weekend!” Both Mia and Seanagh chuckled as they walked towards the grid for the start of season driver photo. Mia looked at her cap, the number 39 embroidered onto the peak in a deep royal purple, before placing it firmly onto her head.

“Hey, you’ll be just fine. But if anyone says anything bad about you, you have Susie, Claire and me in the paddock to stick up for you, not to mention a certain someone else… Hey Jenson!” Seanagh winked and nudged Mia with her elbow before jogging off to catch up with her team mate who was talking to Daniel.

“Well, well, fancy meeting you here Miss Sanders” Mia looked down at her feet as her face split into a wide grin as Nico gently placed a hand on Mia’s shoulder.

“I know… I mean fancy having all of these racing drivers in one place!” Both Mia and Nico laughed as the drivers all took their positions next to their team mates. “Good luck for the race today”

“Thank you, same to you” Nico politely kissed Mia’s cheek and went to sit beside Lewis as Mia walked over to stand beside Romain behind the two McLaren drivers.

The excitement was ripe in the air as the fan filled grandstands rumbled as the race start got closer and closer. As usual the sun was bright in the sky, the weather having no intentions of throwing any spanners in the works.

“Right then Seanagh, time to go to the grid” Seanagh turned to her race engineer Mark and smiled. Both of them were pleased to be working with each other again just for the one race weekend despite the circumstances of Fernando being seemed unfit to drive after his testing accident. She went to the back of the garage and pulled on her balaclava, helmet and racing gloves before climbing into her number sixteen McLaren Honda for what might be the last time.

Seanagh slowly pulled her car out of the garage and down the pit lane for her out lap to the grid. As she went down the second straight towards turn three she ran through the gears and braked early to hit the turn three apex. However upon acceleration Seanagh felt a shudder make its way through the car followed by a horrible clunking sound. A few seconds later there was a large plume of white smoke in Seanagh’s mirrors forcing her to pull off to the side at turn four.

She slowly climbed out of the car and looked at it with slumped shoulders before walking over to the marshals’ post and walking behind the tall meshed fence under one of the marshal’s instructions.  She tightly curled her fingers around the wire as a couple of marshals took to Seanagh’s car with fire extinguishers in case the engine decided to catch fire.

“Come on sweetheart, let’s get you back to the garage” Seanagh reluctantly got on the back of the motorbike and looked at her smoking car until it was out of sight. She got dropped off near the front of the paddock where a downbeat Richard met Seanagh and led her to the team building, but instead she decided to keep walking and headed straight for the garage. It was only then that Seanagh took off her helmet and balaclava and marched towards Mark who was looking through data screen upon data screen with the rest of Seanagh’s mechanics and engineers.

“Can we fix it?” Everyone turned to Seanagh and looked at her with pitiful expressions. “I said can we fix it?” Seanagh’s voice cracked when she asked again, Mark frowned and shook his head before placing a comforting hand on his driver’s shoulder.

“It was a complete engine failure, I’m sorry Seanagh” She looked to the ground and sighed, trying to blink away the tears that were in her eyes.

“It’s not fair… all the hard work you and the guys have all done this weekend…” Seanagh’s voice trailed off as Mark slowly walked over to the pit wall and Jenson took his place.

“Hey, what’s the matter? Why isn’t your car on the grid?”

“My engine blew” Seanagh sighed and looked down at her racing boots. Jenson shook his head and quickly hugged his team mate before saying he had to dart off to the grid. “Finish the race for me will you?”

“I’ll try my best”

 

Seanagh ended up watching the race with Mark in the garage, having elected to not get changed out of her overalls right away. There was more disappointment for Seanagh as Mia was unfairly crashed out at turn two by one of the Sauber’s as he battled with a Toro Rosso and a Ferrari. Mia had stood looking at the damage to her car before slowly walking back to the paddock. After a brief safety car period the race resumed and after an hour and a half of not much happening, eleven cars finished the race. With Jenson finishing in last place two laps down. Everyone in the garage was relieved at the fact that car had somehow managed to complete almost a full race distance considering the complete and utter disaster of testing (the general consensus within the team was the less said about testing the better).

“I should probably go and get changed. Thanks for everything this weekend boys” Seanagh spoke to Mark and her mechanics with a small but sad smile as she zipped her overalls down to the waist and slowly left the garage for the last time.


	61. Race 2: Malaysia 2015

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just as much happens off track as what happen on it

_Friday 27 th March – Drivers Hotel_

Mia huffed as she slowly crawled into bed after her shower. The first thing she did after getting changed was switch on her laptop and have a quick glance through her emails to make sure there wasn’t going to be any last minute surprises when she walked into the garage the next morning for final . After a brief look at an inbox of nothing Mia closed her emails and opened a new tab in her web browser and started at the blinking cursor, her fingers hovering over the keyboard.

After a deep breath and a little bit of self-encouragement Mia rapidly typed into the search bar and hit the enter key with closed scrunched up eyes. As Mia waited for the news results page to load her phone buzzed, a text from Nico showing on her lock screen that he was on his way over to her room.

Eventually the results page loaded and Mia cast her eye over some of the headlines. It was a small attempt to reassure herself that despite the reliability issues Lotus were having, they at least they didn’t have Renault engines anymore.

 

**_Daniel Ricciardo already onto second F1 engine_ **

**_Horner says Renault 100bhp behind Mercedes_ **

**_Renault threatens to quit Formula One as engine stoush continues_ **

 

Mia clicked on the third article out of curiosity, there was talk of Renault pulling out of F1 if it didn’t suit them, but Mia didn’t quite believe the paddock whispers. Even if they had been confirmed in the Tam Principle’s press conference that day. Further on in the article it mentioned Renault doing the exact opposite of leaving F1 and possibly buying another team. Her eyes lit up upon reading that particular piece of information, there were already whispers going around that Lotus already needed to cut down on R&D plans for the car because of their smaller budget. And that was before all of the other whispers about late pay and a rumoured growing pile of bills.

“Hey, I’m back at last” The sound of Nico’s voice pulled Mia back into reality from the world of F1 gossip.

“I’m in here!” Mia closed her laptop and placed it down on the floor, trying to think nothing more about rumours and press speculation. “H!” She instead smiled up at Nico who himself looked a little downbeat as he took off his jacket and slung his backpack off his shoulder and onto the floor. “How was your meeting… chat… thing?” Nico sighed and lay down on the bed looking up at the ceiling. “Well?”

“I called the people at Hockenheim… there really is no German Grand Prix this year…”

“What, you’re joking?!” Mia frowned and moved so she was on her side next to Nico, one hand supporting her head and the other on his chest.

“They can’t afford the hosting fee, and it’s not in their contract to host consecutive races anyway…” It was easy to see just how sad Nico was about not having a home race; his delight at winning last season could have lit up the whole race track if necessary. “But they’re hoping for 2016 so… it’s not all bad”

“But still you deserve to have a home race as much as I or anyone else does”

“I know…” Nico stood up and looked out a change of clothes from his backpack. “But money always talks in this sport, even if some things do have a funny way of sorting themselves out eventually”

 

_Sunday 29 th March – Sepang International Circuit_

As the race began to draw to a close Seanagh was still sat on the pit wall alongside the bosses and chief engineers, watching the live feed in front of her. Unfortunately for McLaren both Jenson and Fernando had to retire their cars after mechanical failures with what looked like different parts of the engine. On the last lap of the race the pit lane was filled with excitement, as a stream of red Scuderia Ferrari clad men and women watched and cheered as Sebastian won the race by an impressive yet unexpected eight and a half seconds.

Seanagh felt a very small smile find its way onto her face as she stayed to watch the victory lap, Ferrari flags were fluttering with pride in the grandstands, as Sebastian’s side of the Ferrari garage ran down to parc ferme to greet their new hero. She was forced to stay on the pit wall as the cars came into the pits to be weighed in scrutineering. Her eyes followed the number five Ferrari without realising, and she stood and watched as Sebastian jumped from his car into the arms of his mechanics, who all seemed to be cheering louder than anyone or anything around them.

“Seanagh!” Her head turned at the sound of Andrea Stella calling her over from the garage. “The debrief is about to start!” She looked up and down the pit lane making sure it was safe for her to dart into the garage and follow Andrea towards the paddock.

 

The post-race debrief (as many had expected) had lasted just under an hour. A stream of downbeat McLaren engineers, team bosses and drivers left the large office and either went to hospitality for some food and water or went to take the garage apart ready to send away to the next race. Seanagh took the former option and joined a few of the mechanics and PR guys in easting the last of catering’s dessert supply.

She hung around for another hour or so before deciding to leave and head back to the hotel, Seanagh wasn’t really needed as there were no post-race interviews to be had. She collected her things and walked out onto the paddock that was finally beginning to disperse. Most of the journalists had left, and all of the team personnel were busy pushing around tyres and pieces of garage walls and fixtures. Seanagh seamlessly left the paddock without as much of a second glance, intending to make a beeline for her car and go straight to the airport via the hotel to pick up her suitcase.

As Seanagh removed her sunglasses and hung them on the neck of her team shirt she saw Britta and Sebastian a few feet ahead of her, talking and laughing as if they were both on top of the world. Of course deep down she knew just what today meant for him. There had been nights when they had stayed up till the small hours, talking of what they wanted for the future. Seanagh had always known Sebastian had wanted to win in red, even thought he had never quite said it. She was happy for him in a sense, even though the sudden end in their relationship meant she could never fully tell him.

“Uh… Sebastian!” He turned round and looked at the McLaren driver, his smile faded but it was still there. Britta said something to Sebastian in German before running back towards the paddock with her phone to her ear. “I just wanted to say congratulations. For the win”

“Thank you” He took a few steps forwards, and shook Seanagh’s outstretched hand politely. “I hear neither of your cars finished” Sebastian asked with a partially furrowed brow.

“Well… probably the less said about that the better” Seanagh shrugged and briefly looked down at the tarmac underneath her feet. “I should probably let you go, there’s probably hundreds more people wanting to talk to you” She unlocked her car and opened the driver’s door and paused when Sebastian spoke again.

“Hey, good luck. For the rest of the year”

“You too… keep this between you and me. But win some more races will you? It’s nice to see someone beating Mercedes on merit” Sebastian grinned and looked over his shoulder as Britta called him over.

“Gladly” With a small wave and a flash of red Sebastian left and ran back towards the paddock, while Seanagh got into her rental car and drove away from the circuit.


	62. Race 5: Spain 2015

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A race of firsts

_Friday 8 th May – Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya_

Mia’s sunglasses were already fixed over her eyes as she walked out of the Lotus motorhome and into the sunny paddock, heading to the garage about twenty minutes before the start of first practice. Her trainer Steph had always opted to go to the garage as the sessions started so she wasn’t hanging around ‘like a bad smell’ (an expression her trainer always used).

“Hey Mia” She stopped walking and turned at the sound of another female Scottish voice, she saw Susie, the top half of her racing overalls resting on her hips, smiling and waving at her as she jogged towards her compatriot.

“Hey Susie” She was clearly excited to be driving the car again given the wide smile on her face. “You alright?”

“Oh I’m grand, nice to be sharing the track with another Scot today!” Mia smiled, while they were both from opposite sides of the country they both wore the Scottish Saltire with pride, on the waist of her overalls for Susie and right next to the British flag on Mia’s black and gold Lotus. “I best get going, best of luck for this weekend” The pair hugged before Susie darted off to the Williams garage, Mia had to walk that little bit further before she reached her mechanics.

Once she was safely in her side of the garage she looked over to see if Romain had arrived yet (turned out he hadn’t) before going over to see her race engineer to run over the teams’ plans for first practice.

“Nothing much different from the normal. We’ll do an install lap on a set of primes just to make sure the car is running normally. Then after that we’ll go through our plan as normal, some long runs to start off with followed by one or two quali sims at the end. That sound alright?”

“Sounds just fine to me, you’re the boss”

“Oh and before I forget, Jolyon is running for Romain in this session. So you’ll be running over some data with him in the debrief” Mia nodded and looked up as the tall 24 year old walked into the garage with his blue helmet in his hands. Jolyon caught Mia’s passing glance and he politely smiled at her and gave a brief wave before making a bee line for Romain’s engineers. Mia shook her head and thought back to the press conference in Australia, she really did seem to find herself surrounded by Palmer’s.

 

_Saturday 9 th May – Lotus Motorhome_

Mia let out a small and quiet sigh as she sat in the Lotus debrief, quietly tapping her pen against her knee underneath the table. While qualifying had been a success in the fact both Mia and Romain had made Q2, neither of them had made the top ten, so they were set to start in P11 and P12. But despite all that Romain was beginning to be concerned that his lack of time in the car in the first practice sessions was going to be affecting his performance at races. Mia had mentally scoffed when he had mentioned that, it wasn’t like he had out-qualified her (again).

But despite all of that there was a slight air of positivity that was slowly making its way through the team. Given how well Mia and Romain had qualified, a double points finish was definitely seen to be on the cards for the race. Providing reliability was on their side.

As Mia walked out of the debrief she looked up at one of the TV’s on the wall, which was showing a replay of the post-qualifying press conference. Nico had finally gotten his first pole position of the season, something that Mia was incredibly happy about. But for the mean time she just wanted to focus on her own race and finally get some points on the table.

 

_Sunday 10 th May – Spanish Grand Prix_

After being weighed in scrutineering, Mia ran back down the pit lane towards the Lotus garage waving to the crowd and jumping in the air in excitement. The whole garage was filled with cheering and smiling faces as finally Lotus had scored a double points finish for the first time in the season, with Romain in eighth and Mia in tenth after pulling off what many commentators and pundits were calling a ballsy move on the outside of Kvyat on the last lap of the race for the final point. While a collective haul of five points might not have been impressive by some people’s standards for Lotus it was a small miracle given their dodgy reliability and serious lack of down force.

After staying behind at the track for the longest Mia had done all year, doing interviews and brief meetings and celebrations with the team she finally headed back to her hotel early on in the evening. She was reading through a raft of congratulatory text messages from her friends and family when she returned to her hotel room, when she looked up and saw Nico sat on the end of his bed, his winner’s trophy by his feet.

A wide smile appeared on Mia’s face at the sight of her boyfriend and he stood up just in time for Mia to run over and jump into his arms.

“You finally won!” Mia and Nico smiled brightly at each other before kissing each other whilst smiling. “I’m so proud of you”

“Me?! You finally scored points today” Mia looked down and blushed.

“And of course they happened on the same weekend” The pair laughed at the timing of their successes as Nico carefully put Mia back on the ground.

“And I wouldn’t have it any other way” Mia smiled before kissing Nico again before going over to her suit case.

“You’re packed already?” Nico asked at the sight of one fully packed suitcase with a small back carefully perched on top.

“Well I didn’t know I was getting points today, besides the team all celebrated at the track before we all had to leave. So if there’s room on your flight home…” Nico grinned and picked up his trophy from the floor that still needed to be put in its own special case.

“Don’t worry there’s always a spare seat for you”


	63. Race 6: Monaco 2015

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The unexpected always seems to happen in Monaco

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To make up for the fact that last chapter took ages I thought I'd post this one a day or two early. I also I just wanted to let you know that I am back at university for second semester, but my timetable is a lot less hectic so I'll still be posting as and when I can write/

_Thursday 21 st May – Monte Carlo_

Monaco’s usual sunny blue sky had been replaced with large clouds in varying shades of grey paired with a definite chill in the air. Seanagh had left the garage with her team sweatshirt zipped all the way up to the base of her chin with her team raincoat left open as she walked with a closed umbrella just in case of any sudden rain showers. She hummed quietly to herself as she slowly walked through the paddock, away in her own thoughts when a voice pulled her back to reality.

“Hey team mate!” Seanagh stopped walking and changed which hand she was carrying the umbrella with so Jenson – also wearing his team raincoat over his overalls – would be able to walk with her without getting bashed in the shins. “Thanks” He gave her his usual charming smile and the accidental lingering gaze.

“You alright JB?”

“Oh I’m wonderful! Well… apart from the rain that’s meant to be forecast. You alright? Going anywhere special?” Jenson joked with a smile; Seanagh chuckled and shook her head.

“Oh just the pit wall via the garage” She shrugged, Jenson’s smile tuned into a grin as he affectionately slung his arms round her shoulders.

“I’ll walk you there then”

“I hope it’s for reasons other than the fact I have an umbrella” The two drivers laughed as they continued their stroll through the paddock and eventually arriving at the garage a few minutes before second practice was due to start. “You know it wasn’t that bad this morning, what happened?” Jenson remarked squinting his eyes up at the clouds.

“I don’t know; just keep it on the black stuff will you?” Jenson and Seanagh were stood by the stairs at the back of the garage; Seanagh had been expecting Jenson to dash off the second they set foot in the building.

“Anything you ask! See you later” Jenson winked at his team mate before jogging into the garage. Seanagh shook her head with a small laugh as she climbed the narrow staircase to the room above the garage where they had just about managed to fit the pit wall in.

One of Monaco’s unique points apart from having practice on a Thursday was being sat above the garage rather than opposite it. As FP2 got underway Seanagh turned around in her chair and looked out of the window, staring up at the clouds that had seemed to have gotten even darker in the span of five minutes. She eventually brought her attention back to the track, in which she had almost a perfect view of the second half of the swimming pool section just before La Rascasse. She kept an eye on the track map as Jenson made is way round on an install lap and just managed to take a picture of his car before it sped off to a part of the track that she wasn’t able to see.

Ten minutes into the session one of the Manor’s crashed which ended up bringing out the red flag, in that time the rainclouds that had looked ominous since the morning finally decided to let out a heavy shower of rain, keeping everyone inside their garages. After a few minutes (and asking permission from Eric) Seanagh went back downstairs and into the garage.

“Hey team mate!” Much to Jenson’s amusement both Seanagh and Fernando turned at the sound of the Brit’s voice; Jenson apologised and called Seanagh over, where they sat at the back of the garage with Mikey and chatted for almost an hour.

 

_Sunday 24 th May_

Seanagh had lost count of just how many laps had passed – it was somewhere in the mid-50s or 60s. Fernando had long since retired due to a gearbox issue. She was watching the race from the back of the garage with bated breath. Jenson had been running in eighth place for lap after lap, Seanagh had her hands clasped in front of her face as she watched on nervously. She was hoping that for once the engine, gearbox and even the electronics would behave themselves until at least after the end of the race.

“Don’t worry, it’ll be fine. I hope” Fernando had joined her after his short round of interviews; he too had a half worried yet half hopeful look on his face. As the number of remaining laps got smaller and smaller the atmosphere of the whole garage got more and more tense, the majority of the mechanics and engineers were making silent prayers to the racing gods for just that little bit of luck to be on their side. When it got to the last lap half the garage could barely look at the timing screens while the other half watched with a mixture of joy and relief, as after what felt like an eternity, Jenson was the eighth driver to see the chequered flag.

Seanagh squealed and jumped for joy and hugged the nearest person who turned out to be a very startled Fernando. Seanagh quickly apologised, thankfully Fernando just shrugged it off. “It’s okay, our first points is a cause for celebration no?” Seanagh nodded before her vision suddenly became very watery.

“I’m so happy I think I might cry” The team hadn’t expected to be in eighth place on merit, quite a lot of people would have been happy with ninth or even tenth. Fernando just chuckled and patted Seanagh on the back.

“Just no tears in the debrief, okay?” He grinned as he went over to the front of the garage to shake hands with Andrea on a race well done.

Eventually Jenson returned to the garage from scrutineering with a wide smile of his face, he shook hands with Eric and hugged his race engineer Tom, Mikey and Fernando. After giving his helmet and gloves to someone Jenson thanked all of his mechanics before spotting Seanagh at the back of the garage. He walked over to her and picked her up and spun her round whilst hugging her tightly.

“We did it!”

“Four points! But… I think you mean _you_ did it Jense” Seanagh replied after she was eventually put back on the ground.

“Well… you’ve helped haven’t you? All those notes and being at the debriefs and you know, being your wonderful helpful self” Seanagh blushed as she looked around at a McLaren garage full of happy mechanics. “Which by the way, how does dinner at my place sound? My treat for surviving the season so far” Seanagh took a few seconds to reply to what Jenson had said. “Unless it being just the two of us would be weird or…”

“No, no. It sounds… fine. Great even”

“Good, I’ll pick you up at your hotel then?” Seanagh just nodded as Richard appeared to drag Jenson away to the press pen for his interviews. “I’ll see you later!” Jenson grinned as he nearly walked into one of the garage walls.

 

“I finally found desert!” Jenson exclaimed as he walked back out onto the balcony. Seanagh looked up at him, in the hope of sneaking in something loaded with calories and sprinkled with sugar. But instead she was given a small bowl of red grapes as Jenson sat back down on the floor of the balcony (chairs for the two of them were overrated it seemed, as were shoes).

“It’ll do” Seanagh shrugged, and tossed a grape into her mouth as she looked at the view through the gaps on the balcony railing. “I’m starting to get why you live here Jense” Seanagh stood up and went up on her bare tiptoes. “You don’t get views like this back home”

“No we don’t” As Seanagh looked out at the Mediterranean she felt something small hit the back of her head. She turned round and frowned at her team mate who had a boyish grin on his face.

“Really?!” Jenson threw another grape, this time hitting the hem of Seanagh’s cream coloured dress. “I can’t believe I’m team mates with an actual twelve year old” Seanagh threw a slightly mushed grape that she had intended to eat back at Jenson, which ended up sticking itself to his light blue button down shirt. Jenson chuckled as the two drivers continued to throw grapes at each other, until the older Brit nearly slipping on a grape put a stop to proceedings.

“Are you alright?” Seanagh went to Jenson’s side, who was half slid down one side of the balcony so he didn’t fall to the floor.

“Yeah, who knew grapes could be so slippery?”

“You are such an idiot Jense” Seanagh laughed as she helped him back up onto his feet. Her hands ended up staying on his shoulders as she smiled and said thank you. Instead of saying a polite ‘you’re welcome’ Seanagh went up on her tiptoes and kissed Jenson out of the blue. Jenson stayed still like a statue, and once Seanagh had realised what had happened she darted back inside to look for her discarded shoes feeling completely embarrassed.

“Seanagh wait…”

“I’ll see myself out, thanks for dinner”

“No wait!” Seanagh stopped, her hand hovering just above the door handle and she sighed. “Can you at least let me drive you back to your hotel. The streets will be packed by this point” Seanagh didn’t say anything, she hadn’t even turned round to face him. “Please?”

“Alright, I’ll wait outside” Seanagh stood outside the front door and waited for Jenson to put on his shoes and find his car keys. They walked down to the resident’s car park in silence and remained quiet for the whole journey back to the hotel. “Thanks for the lift”

“No problem”

“Look, I’m sorry about-” As Seanagh opened the door she turned to Jenson in the hope of making amends.

“I’ll see you at the factory on Wednesday” Jenson cut her off before she could say the rest of the incredibly awkward apology.

“See you then” She politely smiled at Jenson as she got out of the car and hurriedly walk up the steps and into the safety of the hotel reception.

 

As Jenson made the drive back to his apartment he kept on going over and over what had happened on the balcony. Since he was stuck in the usual Monaco traffic he ran his hands across his face and rested his head back against the headrest on the driver’s seat, wondering how (if it was even possible) to go back in time and redo the last hour.


	64. A Home Race and a Hunt For Points

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> British Summers and Hungarian Nights

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait! Just had to get the first few weeks of the new semester out of the way and finally figure out where I'm going with this story.

_Sunday 5 th July – Silverstone_

Jenson huffed as he slowly got out of the car moments after switching off the engine; he took a few steps and briefly looked at the damage that had been done before giving a wave to the crowd as he went on the very short walk back to the garage. It was possibly the only perk of being taken out of the race at turn two.

As Jenson eventually made his way back into the garage he took off his helmet and apologised to his engineer Tom and his mechanics for what happened at the start.

“I’m sorry Mum” Jenson sighed and enveloped his Mum in a tight hug, although he had a nagging feeling that he needed the hug much more than she did.

“It’s alright love” Simone gave him a warm smile; as usual she was just happy that her son was able to come back to the garage. “You should probably be off for your interviews I imagine” Jenson looked where his Mum was pointing behind him and saw Richard leaning against the back wall. He looked as if he was finishing off a text before he walked over to the garage entrance.

“Hey” Jenson politely greeted the dark haired press officer with a small pat on the back as they walked out into the paddock.

“I’m sorry I’m seeing you this early Jenson” Richard frowned, and seemed to be leading the driver to the motorhome rather than straight to the press pen. “You can get changed before seeing the press if you want, just in case you need a few minutes to compose yourself” It was beginning to sink in that Jenson’s run of back luck at his home race had continued (as a small part of him had been expecting). Not to mention that his overalls were starting to get a bit snug in the warm sunshine already.

“Yeah that’s probably a good idea, I won’t be a minute” Jenson followed Richard into the McLaren motorhome, who seemed to make a beeline for the table where Seanagh was sat at by herself, scowling at one of the TV screens as they replayed the start. Jenson shook his head and jogged up the stairs to his driver room where he got changed in minutes and went back downstairs again.

The interviews seemed to take less time than it had taken Jenson to find his sunglasses as he found himself back in the motorhome after just fifteen minutes. This time Richard had darted off back to the garage to keep an eye on anything ‘tweet worthy’, so Jenson looked around at the tables in hospitality (even though he had decided what table to sit at already). “Mind if I join you?”

“Not at all” Seanagh pulled out the chair next to her while offering him a sympathetic smile as Jenson sat down. “Sorry about turn two, that was really, really shit”

“Yeah you’re telling me” Jenson sighed as the TV feed cut to the two leading Williams cars. “Still… there’s always next year” He finished his sentence after a long pause.

“Do you want a drink? I was just about to go get one” Seanagh drummed her fingers on the table before standing up.

“You know, I wouldn’t mind a light cider” Seanagh looked at her team mate with a raised eyebrow, she then took a minute to think about it before deciding to get one for herself, the pair of them both agreeing that some mild drowning of sorrows was in order. As the two Brits enjoyed their drinks they watched the race without making much comment on the action itself, and more on the weather – amongst other things.

“Ten quid says it rains before the end of the race” Jenson smirked as he leaned in to shake Seanagh’s hand.

“Ten says it doesn’t” Jenson looked out of the large motorhome windows and up at the clouds, the shade of grey was starting to make Jenson’s wallet feel lighter already. The thud of Seanagh’s cider glass hitting the table caused Jenson to look at her with a small frown. “You alright there team mate?”

“I’m sorry for what happened in Monaco” She looked at her empty bottle and Jenson sighed.

“You don’t need to apologise”

“Yes I do! It’s been driving my mad for weeks, that I might have… _ruined_ something” Seanagh turned to look at Jenson with her eyes full of worry. “We’ve been getting along great and I don’t want to ruin that. I mean we are still friends, aren’t we?” She spoke with a small tinge of sadness; Jenson couldn’t tell if it was due to the two of them just being friends or the idea of them not getting along at all.

“Of course we’re friends, and I swear you never ruined anything” Jenson finished off the sentence in his head. _‘If anyone ruined anything then it was me’._ “I’ll get us both some water” When Jenson returned with two bottles of mineral water Seanagh was smiling and holding out one of her hands. “You do know these are free right?”

“You owe me a tenner, _mate_ ” Jenson looked up at the TV screen as he sat down and frowned.

“Oh come on…” He cursed the ‘Great British Summer’ as he gave Seanagh the money, his mood only slightly improved by the fact that Fernando had ended up finishing the race in tenth as a result of the rain shower.

“Hey” Seanagh placed a hand on Jenson’s arm and offered him a smile; she could obviously see Jenson’s not-so-subtle disappointment at not getting to race in the changeable conditions. “Don’t worry about it. Like you said, there’s always next year”

 

_Sunday 26 th July – Hungaroring_

The atmosphere on the grid in Hungary compared to that of Silverstone three weeks ago couldn’t have been more different. All the drivers were stood on the grid with their arms round each other in a massive circle surrounding their race helmets, with Jules’ helmet right in the very centre. As the minute silence ended Seanagh and Jenson turned to each other and hugged tightly.

“Good luck… both of you” Seanagh set herself back on the ground when she realised that Fernando was still standing next to his team mates, looking between the pair of them with a suspicious gaze. Seanagh picked up her helmet from the asphalt and ran back into the garage before any TV crew spotted her. “Hey” Seanagh gave her Dad a small smile as she walked right to him. He had decided to fly out to the race last minute on Friday afternoon, it was clear that the loss of a friend had taken quite the toll on his daughter. That and the fact she was still crying.

“Are you alright love, and I mean _really_ alright?” Seanagh huffed as she placed her helmet down on the bench beside her Dad and wiped her eyes.

“I… I think so”

“You said it yourself; everyone racing is what Jules would have wanted, and both Jenson and Fernando will be fine. You never know they might even score points today” Seanagh smiled and shook her head at her Dad’s optimism and simply hugged his arm, resting her head on his shoulder.

“Thanks for being here today”

“And miss the Hungarian Grand Prix?! Not likely”

 

As the race neared the end of the final lap everyone in the McLaren garage was once again watching and hoping for both cars to see the chequered flag. While Vettel won his second race of the year both sides of the McLaren garage rushed to the pit wall to see their drivers finish in fifth and ninth. Everyone cheered as Fernando and Jenson went by before they all started to hug each other.

“What did I tell you?” Seanagh’s Dad grinned as he and his daughter hugged in celebration.

“I need to remember to listen to you when you tell me this place is lucky for us”

“Well it’s true!” Everyone rushed back into the garage to avoid over cluttering the pit wall (mainly upon Ron’s request) and once Jenson and Fernando had returned they were given a hero’s welcome with thunderous applause.

 

“Are you sure you’ll be alright here yourself Dad? I feel bad when-”

“Seanagh this is a four star hotel I will find something to do. You just go out with the team and enjoy yourself” Seanagh had walked out of the hotel lift just in front of her Dad, she spotted Jenson in a smart shirt and dark jeans stood near the main doors. “Good evening Jenson!” Jenson joined the pair after Seanagh’s Dad waved him over.

“Good evening Mark, nice to see you here” Jenson smiled politely as he shook Mark’s hand.

“I never thought I’d find myself saying this but can you please take Seanagh to whatever nightclub you’re going to so she can stop worrying about me”

“Love you too Dad” Seanagh kissed him on the cheek and watched as he went towards the hotel restaurant.

“Uh… I’ll keep an eye on her!” They both laughed at Mark’s hand gesture for the two of them to leave. “You ready then?”

“Yeah, let’s go”

 

The team had somehow managed to book out the entirety of the Gozsdu Sky Terrace for their evening celebrations (although some had the idea they had only gotten it after Mercedes cancelled an alleged booking, but no one had any real proof). The stylish rooftop bar was predominantly indoors with a glass ceiling that merged with the large windows, but it did have a small outside terrace with high tables and stools looking out over the city view.

“Wait; didn’t we come here when I won a couple of years ago?” Seanagh remarked as she sat on a familiar orange seat next to a square wooden table.

“You don’t miss a trick do you?” Richard sighed as he set his drink down. “Shame Vanessa’s not here to defend you” Seanagh dropped her jaw in mock hurt.

“You used to be my press officer Rich, here’s me thinking you liked me” The pair scowled at each other before laughing as Mikey and Jenson joined them. As the two men sat down Richard and Mikey briefly shared a knowing smirk and a nod that neither of the drivers noticed. The group of four talked for ages and shared many laughs over a few drinks, the atmosphere at the venue was so calm considering just about everyone else was doing the same. McLaren’s double points finish couldn’t have been a better way for everyone in the team to kick start the summer break.

“So what exotic locations are you two going for your summer holidays then?” Richard asked as he leaned back in his chair.

“Well Jenson’s dragging me to California” Mikey’s roll of his eyes and Jenson’s cries of self-defence caused Seanagh to giggle.

“I’m not dragging you anywhere! He volunteered, and besides it’s just cycling” Mikey already had a smile on his face that said he was planning a training regime to make Jenson’s holiday truly awful. “What about you then?” Jenson turned to Seanagh who carefully placed her empty glass on the table.

“Haven’t decided yet, knowing my luck I’ll get dragged into house sitting”

“Oh the glamorous life of a racing driver… Will I get another round in?” Richard asked to a chorus of shaking heads. As the evening progressed more people started to get up and dance, with varying degrees of success. The main casualty was Richard, who had to get helped back to his seat by Jenson and Seanagh after hurting his ankle, luckily for him Mikey hadn’t left yet and had offered to check that it wasn’t broken.

“He’ll be alright won’t he?” Seanagh asked as her and Jenson went towards the outside terrace for some fresh air.

“Well he’s in safe hands; it’s probably just a sprain” They walked out onto the terrace and sat at a table almost exactly in the middle, surprisingly they were the only people sat there. “I uh… should probably tell you something”

“What is it?” Seanagh hesitantly asked as she watched Jenson sit down opposite her.

“You never needed to apologise for what happened between us in Monaco, if anyone had to apologise then it’s me”

“ _You_?” She tilted her head and looked at Jenson in confusion.

“I shouldn’t have reacted the way I did, I mean I clearly hurt your feelings and…” Jenson paused, looking at Seanagh while she pursed her lips together and tapped her fingers against the table. “I thought you were still trying to get over Sebastian so… I was really confused by what you did. And I’m sorry”

“You thought I was still upset over Sebastian?! I got over him months ago” Seanagh let out a deep breath and placed a hand on Jenson’s shoulder. “But thank you for clearing that up… I should probably go check up on Rich, just to make sure he can still walk” Seanagh was alone in getting up to return to the bar. “Thank you Jense, see you at the factory on Wednesday” Seanagh leaned in and sheepishly kissed Jenson on the cheek before quickly heading back inside, completely missing the wide smile that had formed on Jenson’s face.


	65. One Night In Singapore...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two people, one hotel room, and an awful lot of feelings.

_Thursday 2 nd September – Italy_

Seanagh paced a few feet up and down a small stretch of her hotel room carpet with her phone pressed firmly to her ear, waiting for her manager to speak.

“Rebecca Midlem speaking” Seanagh sighed with relief after waiting for what felt like days for her assistant to put her through.

“It’s me Becks” Seanagh spun on the balls of her feet and continued pacing.

“Oh it’s you! Sorry my new assistant is still… This is a conversation for another time; you’re pacing again aren’t you?” Rebecca, or Becks as Seanagh often called her, had been managing Seanagh’s affairs since late 2009. She was the one who brought in Vanessa as Seanagh’s personal trainer, as well as getting that ‘coveted’ McLaren seat at the very end of 2012.

“Have you heard anything yet? From Ron… or anyone?” She instantly heard her manager sigh and start drumming her fingers against her wooden desk. “Let me guess you either have and don’t want to tell me, or you’ve heard absolutely-”

“You can’t let on that you know this” Rebecca hurriedly speaking suddenly cut Seanagh off before she said anything too foul mouthed. “But, from what I’ve been led to believe, Ron has left it up to Jenson to decide if he wants to race next year” Seanagh stopped pacing and almost stopped breathing as well.

“Oh” It suddenly made sense why her team mate had been slightly awkward around her since the start of summer break.

“I know it could go either way, but I’ve been speaking to other teams just in case. As far as I’m aware Haas are still looking, and Lotus or Renault or whatever they decide to call themselves are too. But given Jolyon’s there I’m not going to get my hopes up on that one”

“Is that it?”

“It’s hard at this time of the season, you know that. But there are some options outside of F1 I’m keeping an eye on just in case” Seanagh sighed and rubbed her forehead with her free hand.

“I’m sorry, I know you’re trying your best Becks. I’m just so stressed!”

“I’ve been working with you for almost six years. I know that you’ve been pacing up and down every walkable surface for weeks. I’ll let you know when I have something concrete or worth your attention, okay?” Just as Seanagh was about to give her manager a polite goodbye there was a rapid knock on her hotel door, followed quickly by Mia shouting to see if Seanagh was in.

“Thanks, Becks. I’ll call you later” Seanagh sighed as she opened the door and tried to give Mia her best smile. “Hi”

“What have you been doing for the past ten minutes?! We were supposed to be going for lunch” A penny suddenly dropped in Seanagh’s mind, she had completely forgotten about their lunch date until that moment. “Let me guess, you forgot”

“I am the worst person in the world… Mia I’m so sorry!”

“It’s alright; if we don’t have any red traffic lights on our way then we should still make our reservation. Come on!” Seanagh quickly grabbed a jacket, purse and keycard before diving out the room and following Mia towards the lift.

 

_Saturday 19 th September – Singapore_

Seanagh huffed at the sound of three knocks on her hotel room door; she slowly got up from her double bed and trudged towards the door. She opened it and saw Jenson leaning against the doorframe, smiling the second he saw her.

“Evening team mate”

“Evening. What can I do you for?” Seanagh crossed her arms and glanced at the many sheets of paper in Jenson’s hands.

“I thought we could go over these, you know for tomorrow” Jenson looked incredibly hopeful as he held up a bundle of data sheets. Seanagh just smiled and took a few steps back allowing Jenson in. “Plus, this is just according to your twitter, you seemed extremely bored…” Seanagh giggled at the thought of Jenson avidly scrolling through her twitter page before sitting back down on the bed.

“Let’s have a look at those data sheets then”

“Which ones do you want?” Jenson started sorting the sheets into which parts of the car they related to.

“As long as it isn’t the engine I’m not bothered” Jenson chuckled, before throwing a smaller pile of sheets away.

“Couldn’t agree more” Seanagh picked up the first set of sheets that was closest to her and instantly became engrossed in them, reading them all over at least twice. She even looked out her various notebooks with the intention of taking notes when she turned to where she thought Jenson was sat to ask his opinion on something.

“What do you make of this Jense?” Instead of being greeted with a warm smile and blue-grey eyes all she saw was a discarded hoodie and a small pile of paper. She looked up and saw Jenson stood on the balcony, so she put her notebooks and data sheets down and decided to join him. “Penny for your thoughts?” Jenson smiled, as he usually did when the pair were around each other, and let out a small sigh.

“I just… needed some space”

“Is everything alright?” Jenson paused, where any other person would have said they were fine even if they weren’t.

“Too much to think about” He shook his head and turned round so he now had his back to the Singapore skyline. “And a few things just keep on going round and round in my head and…” Jenson cut himself off and scoffed before quickly changing the subject. “How have you been anyway?”

“Me?!” Seanagh replied startled, wondering why the topic of conversation was suddenly her. “I’ve been alright… I guess” Seanagh folded her arms across her chest and looked down at her shoes, she looked up at the sound of Jenson sighing, he looked as if he was thinking about whether or not he should say something.

“I’m sorry I haven’t spoken to you much lately”

“It’s understandable” Seanagh shrugged “I’m sure you’ve had other things on your mind, and besides I’m just the reserve driver” She gave Jenson a small smile and turned to head back into her room.

“You’re way more than ‘just the reserve driver’ to me you know” Seanagh turned round in the doorway and looked at Jenson softly. “You’re… special, to me” Jenson spoke with such sincerity, and given the way he was looking at her she had to believe him. Seanagh gasped quietly and felt herself rooted to the spot. When he noticed Jenson walked the few steps that were between the two drivers before he leaned down and kissed her with what felt like months and months of feelings boiled down into one intense kiss. Luckily for them it wasn’t a brief moment in a hotel corridor, or where one of them didn’t know what was going on. It seemed to have been third time lucky for the pair, as Seanagh went high up on her toes and wrapped her arms round the back to Jenson’s neck before burying the tips of her fingers deep in his sandy blond hair.

They stood like that for what probably was minutes, making up for all the nearly’s and lost moments when they could have told each other exactly how they felt. “I know this might sound a tad forward…” Jenson paused to catch his breath, moving a few stray strands of hair out of Seanagh’s eyes. “But I think I love you” Seanagh’s face split into a wide smile before she softly kissed him again. “You know, when I first met you I promised myself I wouldn’t do this” Jenson huffed and looked at his feet while reluctantly letting Seanagh out of his arms.

“If it makes you feel better I told myself the same thing” Seanagh sighed and sat down on the edge of the bad and the room was suddenly filled with a slightly uncomfortable silence. “And because of that, I only went out with Sebastian in the hope the feelings I had for you would go away” She scrunched her eyes shut as the words hurriedly left her mouth, even though she could still hear Jenson let out a small gasp and a long sigh. Little did she know Jenson had done the same, small flings with old flames that only lasted for a few weeks tops, because every time that new relationship buzz would quickly wear off his mind would always drift to the person on the other side of the garage.

“Do you want me to give you some space?”

“No” Seanagh looked up and replied quickly. “W-what if tomorrow we decide that this is a bad idea again and-”

“Shhh” Jenson crouched down in front of Seanagh who looked to be on the verge of tears. He cupped her face with his left hand and brushed his thumb across her cheek. “Maybe you and I have chased each other around long enough but… I think mentally I’m a bit ahead of you. It’s only right that any decision about us should be on your terms”

“My terms… Jense what are you…” Seanagh whispered as she watched Jenson collect the pile of data sheets that he had arrived with. She knew that her saying I love you back would make him stay, but for some reason she couldn’t bring herself to say it. “Jenson please don’t leave” She stood up and took a couple of steps forward, she was scared of this turning into a repeat of Monaco; she didn’t want to mess up anything again for a possible third time in a row. Jenson swiftly turned round and gently kissed Seanagh on the forehead before looking at her fondly.

“I want you to be happy, and that’s with or without me. Just take as long as you need to figure out what’s best for yourself” Seanagh muttered out a quiet okay in reply. “I’ll see you tomorrow” Jenson gave Seanagh a warm smile before eventually leaving her hotel room to head back to his own. Seanagh sighed and sat on the floor with her had in her hands. Eventually she decided to get ready for bed, she put out her hand to push herself up from the floor and was surprised when she felt soft fabric underneath her fingers instead of carpet. It turned out to be Jenson’s hoodie still in a small heap on the floor. She picked it up and placed it on the bed and ended up putting the hoodie on once she was in her pyjamas, and she slowly climbed into bed. Her body felt tired but her mind was buzzing, trying to figure out what _really_ was best for her.

 

_Sunday 20 th September – Marina Bay Street Circuit_

“Guys I’ve lost gear” Seanagh at to stop herself from visibly reacting to Jenson’s team radio message, and it seemed that everyone else on the pitwall was doing the same. She reluctantly took off her headset just as Fernando (who had retired earlier on – thanks to gearbox problems) came over to speak to his team mate.

“What happened?” He asked in his usual heavy Spanish accent, tinged with concern.

“Gearbox problem” She muttered quietly with a small shake of the head.

“Looks like another early debrief then”

“Yeah, looks like” Seanagh looked up at the sound of a loud, shrill whistle announcing a car had entered the pits, and as expected it was Jenson who pulled straight into the garage to retire the car from yet another race.

 

As expected the post-race debrief lasted less than twenty minutes, with a proper meeting scheduled for when everyone was in a much better mood. As Seanagh slowly walked out of the meeting room and into the main hospitality area, she saw Jenson running upstairs with Fernando out of the corner of her eye. As she watched him Mikey carefully squeezed past her.

“Oh, Mikey!” Jenson’s physio turned round and politely smiled at Seanagh. “Is uh… is Jenson staying long?”

“No I don’t think so; he’s already done his interviews. Why do you ask?”

“Oh I just needed to talk to him about the simulator plans for next week that’s all” Mikey hummed, he knew Seanagh was lying but he also didn’t know why Seanagh wanted to see Jenson so he just went with along with it.

“You might want to catch him before he gets changed then” He stood aside allowing Seanagh to rush up the stairs where she lunged towards Jenson’s private room before rapidly knocking on the door.

“Give me a second, I’m not decent” Seanagh thought about making a witty remark but her mind was still giddy with more important things to say so she just stayed quiet and bounced up and down on her toes. After a minute or So Jenson answered the door half dressed in his black shorts while still wearing his fireproof top.

“Hey team mate” Seanagh smiled as Jenson looked shocked to see her standing there. “Do you have a minute?”

“Is it important?” Jenson gulped sounding nervous.

“Yeah, it is” Jenson said nothing and simply let Seanagh in. He took a deep breath as he shut the door behind her and ran a finger round the tight collar of his shirt. “You alright?”

“Fine, Singapore’s treated me worse I suppose” Seanagh hummed, a flashback to two years ago briefly popping up inside her head. “So, what’s so important that you need to see me now?” Jenson clearly wanted to finish getting changed and go back to the hotel. Seanagh took a deep breath before speaking, and looked Jenson right in the eyes.

“I love you too Jenson” Seanagh could see her team mate’s eyes widen. “Believe me I wanted to say it last night but… I think I was too in shock at you saying it that I just couldn’t find the will to say it” Jenson let out a relieved sigh before his face split into a grin, and he crossed the space between them in a few steps before kissing Seanagh with what felt like all the love he had for her. Eventually they both pulled away so they could catch their breath. The pair just smiled at each other for a while, before bursting into relieved laughter.

“You…” Jenson didn’t know what to say so he just smiled and kissed Seanagh again.

“I should probably let you get changed. I’ll see you back at the hotel”

“See you team mate” Jenson shouted as he pulled his fireproof shirt over his head and threw it towards the pile with the rest of his fireproofs before looking around for his shirt.

“You and Seanagh get that sorted then?” Mikey walked in right after Seanagh left, completely unaware at what had just happened.

“Yeah” Jenson just stood on the spot with a lazy grin on his face. Mikey just tutted and threw Jenson’s shirt at his face. “Oh, thanks” Jenson smiled at his physio who just rolled his eyes.

“I’ll be downstairs, and hurry up we should have left by now” Mikey’s seriously disapproving glare was enough to make Jenson quickly bundle his things in his team issued backpack before following him out the door.


	66. Changes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry it's been so long since the last chapter! I had a very stressful summer and sadly couldn't work on this until now. Thank you all for your comments in the mean time. I appreciate it so much <3
> 
> Also... in the time I haven't been writing this, my brain decided to come up with an AU to this story (and AU of an AU, weird I know...) but I'm on the fence about posting it or not, so if you would like to read it then absolutely let me know!

_Thursday 24 th September – Suzuka_

The McLaren hospitality was a funny sight on the morning of the press day, mainly due the fact that about a third of the Lotus team were huddled in one corner eating breakfast. Jenson looked to one table near the front and saw Seanagh sat with Mia and Jolyon, all chatting over steaming cups of tea. He somehow managed to make his way through the gaggle of engineers, press officers and drivers towards Eric’s office where he made sure to knock loud above the noise.

“Ah Jenson, please come in, have a seat” Eric smiled politely and shut the door as soon as Jenson was in the room.

“Is there any reason why nearly half the Lotus guys are sat through there?” Jenson asked as he sat down, Eric gave a long drawn out sigh and shook his head.

“From what I could tell they got locked out of their hospitality because they hadn’t paid their fees on time” Jenson nodded, a lot of those people were Eric’s colleagues a few years ago, he had to assume that all the other teams were housing the other half of the Lotus employees.

“I see” Jenson bit down on his lower lip, he hadn’t exactly thought out what he wanted to say.

“So, what have to came to see me about? Did the press conference go well?”

“I uh…” Jenson paused and scratched his head. “I’ve decided what to do for next year, and beyond I suppose”

“Oh” Eric seemed shocked to be hearing Jenson’s decision so soon after the last race. “And that is?”

 

“So have you finally got a seat sorted out yet?” Mia asked while downing the dregs of her tea.

“Not yet” Seanagh shrugged and awkwardly looked at Jolyon, they had a silent agreement to not discuss race seats and contracts with each other in case they happened to be going for the same seat (and awkwardly enough right now they were).

“Did any of you see where Romain went?” Jo looked around and quickly changed the subject. Seanagh shook her head and looked around the slightly crowded room, she could just about see Fernando sat with Andrea near a large group of Lotus mechanics.

“I don’t think he’s here, he must have gone somewhere else” Seanagh looked around again, and realised that she still hadn’t seen Jenson arrive. She checked her phone to see if he’d texted him but she had no new messages. “Jenson hasn’t arrived yet has he?” Jolyon shook his head with a small no while Mia just rolled her eyes.

After roughly an hour passed, Mia was dragged by her press officer for the melee of interviews in the press pen, and Jolyon left along with the majority of everyone else for the track walk. As the hospitality cleared out Seanagh sighed, with not much of the season left she was beginning to wonder if she would have her second chance at Formula 1.

“Hey! Team mate” Seanagh turned round in her seat and saw Fernando walking towards her putting on his team raincoat, he had also insisted on using the nickname Jenson had penned for her. “I am going for my track walk with the engineers if you would like to join us” Seanagh nearly jumped out of her seat at the opportunity.

“Yeah that’d be great, thanks Fernando”

“You’re welcome” The Spaniard smiled and looked around him. “By the way, have you seen Jenson this afternoon?”

“Nope” Seanagh shook her head and shrugged. “He’s probably out there already” Just as the two colleagues were about to leave Jenson emerged from Eric’s office; they were both smiling as they left. Seanagh’s mind had already jumped to conclusions and her heart sank a little.

“Where have you been?” Fernando asked, tapping his phone against his leg. “We are supposed to be going for our track walk” Jenson looked at his team mates and sighed with a small content smile.

“I’m doing mine later, I’m filming a thing with DC” He patted Fernando on the shoulder and looked at Seanagh as he said bye and jogged out of hospitality. Fernando muttered something about Jenson being very strange before leading Seanagh out towards the track.

 

“So… will be BBC know first about what you’re doing for next year?” Jenson was stood right next to his car in the garage filming a small feature for the BBC with DC. He looked at his friend as he asked the question, knowing he had already made his decision and was having to lie about it on camera.

“Well you might know first, it’s whether you will do the friends thing and keep it between us” Even to himself Jenson sounded deadly serious, and even though the camera wasn’t on David he could clearly see it.

They wrapped up the interview (with Jenson going into great detail about the perks of his hotel room) and the camera crew happily trotted off to start editing the piece together. Jenson let out a long sigh as they left as he looked around the garage, the reality of his decision slowly starting to sink in; so much so that a few tears began to brim in his eyes.

“You alright mate?” David placed a concerned hand on Jenson’s shoulder.

“Yeah… yeah. About that friends thing I mentioned” DC’s eyes widened slightly.

“You haven’t made a decision in the last five seconds have you?”

“No… a few days ago actually, I uh, told Eric just now about an hour ago”

“Oh” DC cautiously looked around him, the garage was very quiet as there was only a couple of Fernando’s mechanics acting very interesting in the floor of the car. But despite that DC moved so he was stood millimetres away from Jenson, who took a long pause and a deep breath before speaking.

“I’m…” Jenson had to stop again; a rather annoying lump had formed in his throat. “Abu Dhabi is going to be my last race” DC’s eyes widened and his jaw fell slightly, for once he was speechless. “I’m retiring” On one hand it was such a relief to finally tell someone, that he had finally figured out what he wanted from the rest of his life and was ready to make a start on it, but on the other hand it hurt. Formula 1 had been Jenson’s life since he was twenty, and now it was just a handful of races from being all over. For good.

“Wow” DC shook his head and looked to the floor.

“Sorry you have to take your Jenson Button poster down now” Jenson gave a small smirk at what David had joked about earlier on in their interview. It was then that DC gave a roaring laugh, and Jenson ending up laughing too. “You really need to keep this quiet for the next week or so. The team is having to speak to Seanagh’s people to get her contract sorted and I don’t know how long that’s going to take”

“ _Seanagh’s_ getting your seat?” Jenson nodded, he was glad Eric had mentioned it at the end of their meeting or he would have had to create an excuse within a week to reserve his retirement decision.

“She’s the best we’ve got. I couldn’t imagine the team picking anyone else” Right at that moment Jenson heard running footsteps coming towards the McLaren garage.

“I’ll see you back at the hotel Jo! Oh” Seanagh waved to her cousin and took one step into the garage before seeing Jenson and DC still stood very close together. “Am I interrupting something?” She asked cautiously, ready to run back up the pit lane and get into the paddock another way.

“No we’re all finished. Have you just ran the track?” Seanagh wasn’t wearing the team gear he had seen her in before he left; instead she wore a white t-shirt with cropped black leggings and trainers with her hair in a messy ponytail.

“Yeah, you’ve been ages. Eric will be having words with you DC if you keep him any longer” David chuckled and started backing away from the pair.

“Well he’s all yours; I’m supposed to be in a production meeting anyway. I’ll see you both later” David gave a small wave before hastily walking out of the McLaren garage.

“Everything okay Jense?” Seanagh asked still sounding a little breathless. Jenson nodded before smiling at her.

“Yeah… yeah it is actually” The two drivers stood smiling at each other, the events from Singapore still very fresh in their minds.

“Well” Seanagh looked at her watch and her eyebrows jumped up her forehead. “We might be late for the team briefing if we don’t leave now”

“Right” Jenson looked around the garage, taking in its pristine what walls and floor and took a long look at the bright red 22 on his car before following Seanagh out of the garage.

 

_Tuesday 29 th September – Woking_

Seanagh walked through the factory alone to the staff lockers after the post-race debrief (due to a non-points finish at Honda’s home race it was unsurprisingly short). She dumped one of her notebooks in her bag and picked up another one and slammed the door shut before spinning on her heels and going to leave the room again. Only she ran into Eric and stopped in her tracks.

“Hello Eric, is everything alright?” She asked politely and with a small smile, internally hoping she wasn’t about to get sacked. She had been worrying about it over the past few weeks ever since Kevin had been shown the door by Ron (on his birthday no less, and he was just a test driver like Stoffel).

“Yes, can I see you in my office before you head over to the simulator?”

“Sure” She nervously smiled and followed the Frenchman out the door, her bead was buzzing, trying to figure out which of the many scenarios she had been dreading was about to happen, as well has having to make semi-awkward small talk about the traffic on the way in and the typical British Autumnal weather. After what felt like an age Seanagh arrived at Eric’s office, only her manager Rebecca was sat waiting with a proud smile on her face. Seanagh looked at her feeling incredibly confused; Rebecca just smiled and greeted her driver with a polite hug.

“Are we ready?” Eric led the way in.

“Becks what on earth is going on?!” Seanagh asked in a panicked and hushed whisper.

“It’s alright” She replied in her normal voice. “Eric and I just have some news that is going to make your entire year”

 

“I don’t understand… you want to retire. Now?!” Fernando was looking at Jenson as if he had just sprouted and extra pair of eyes. “Why?” Jenson smiled and finally sat down next to his team mate and shrugged.

“To be honest… I think I’m done. I just want to have a life Fernando”

“But you will keep racing? You are far too talented to just stop”

“Maybe… after some time off. Ron wants me to stay on as some kind of ambassador though” Jenson chuckled; he was still contemplating the offer.

“Why? Will my new team mate be rubbish at sponsor pictures or something?” Fernando let out a light laugh at the thought of having to get to know a new team mate so soon.

“Oh no… Seanagh’s a pro at that sort of stuff by now”

“Seanagh?!” Fernando’s voice jumped two octaves at his new team mate being dropped into conversation without an introduction.

“Yeah… why is everyone so surprised it’s her? She’s bloody good you know”

“Am not surprised I just don’t know how I will get on with her… what do you mean everyone? Who did you tell?”

“Just DC”

“I see…” Fernando paused. “I assume she is being told the good news?”

“Being team mates with you isn’t exactly good news mate” Fernando howled with laugher and clapped Jenson on the shoulders. “She’s just like any other driver. Don’t worry you’ll both be fine” Jenson gave Fernando a reassuring smile.

“So… I guess this will make you an old man now you are retiring” Fernando smirked and Jenson just lightly hit him on the shoulder.

“I should probably call my Mum and sisters, let them know”

“Of course” Jenson left the simulator and quickly send a text to Seanagh, letting her know where he would be if they wanted to talk, before going to call his family.

 

Seanagh took in a deep breath as Eric handed her the black fountain pen. She placed her signature on all the dotted lines with a beaming smile on her face. She was going to be a Formula 1 driver again, with Fernando as her team mate and Stoffel in reserve. It was only then she began to wonder where Jenson fitted into the picture. One of the girls from the legal department looked over the contract and gave a small smile.

“That appears to be everything Mr Boullier”

“Fantastic” Eric stood up and stretched out his hand; Seanagh got up from her seat and shook his hand with a bright smile. “It will be a pleasure to have you in the car again next season”

“Thank you Eric, can I go and tell my family?”

“Of course. We’ll either be making the announcement today or tomorrow, but feel free to tell them” Seanagh beamed and rushed out of Eric’s office and hastily dialled her parents’ phone number and waited for them to answer.

“Hello, Mark Palmer speaking”

“Hi Dad” Seanagh’s smile grew even wider at the sound of her Dad’s voice.

“Seanagh sweetheart! How are you?”

“I’m great Dad… are Mum and Will home? I uh… have some news” Her Dad could probably hear his daughter grinning down the phone as he walked through to the kitchen.

“They’re here darling I’ve put you on speaker. What the good news?” Seanagh took in a deep breath and looked around her to make sure the corridor was empty.

“I’m driving for McLaren next year” She heard claps and cheers on the other end of the phone, and the sound of her parents crying.

“Nice one sis! Does this mean I can be your photographer again?” Seanagh laughed at her brother and started to cry with joy herself.

“If you’re up for coming to twenty one races next year then sure!” Seanagh took a moment to compose herself before carrying on. “Now you can’t tell anyone. The team don’t know when they’re announcing me and Fernando but they let me tell you first”

“Wait… you and _Fernando_?” Seanagh’s Mum, who sounded very confused, changed the whole tone of the conversation completely.

“Yeah, you know Fernando Alonso…”

“I know who he is! I just… thought it would have been you and Jenson” The niggling feeling of what Jenson was doing next year began to tug at Seanagh’s mind again.

“I honestly don’t know what Jenson’s doing next year; I haven’t seen him since the race debrief this morning so…” Seanagh’s voice trailed off as she looked out the window of the MTC, it was drizzling in Woking, but the views surrounding the factory were nothing short of beautiful. “Anyway I need to go” Seanagh saw her former press officer Richard walking towards her, he too was grinning from ear to ear. “I can skype later if you want when I get home”

“Let us know when you’re free love”

“And well done, we’re all really proud of you. And remember to tell Uncle John too”

“I will Dad, I love you. Bye!” She hung up and placed her phone in her pocket before Richard hugged Seanagh tightly round the middle and lifted her up off the ground.

“Congratulations! I came to find you as soon as Eric rang to write up a press release” Richard looked at Seanagh with so much pride she thought he would burst. “It’ll be nice for us to be a team again!” Seanagh laughed, her physio Vanessa, Richard and herself were rarely seen apart when Seanagh was racing full time at McLaren.

“Yeah, it’ll be good to have you back”

“Well I need to run back to my desk before anyone knows I’m gone, depending on what upstairs say I might need you for pictures later so stick around yeah?”

“Will do boss!” Seanagh smirked as Richard saluted her before jogging back to his desk in the PR office. Seanagh grabbed her phone out of her pocket again to call her Uncle John to let him know the good news when she saw that Jenson had texted her earlier.

_‘Congrats on the seat team mate! I’ll be in the usual place if you want to talk. Just let me know x’_

Seanagh looked at the message for more than a few minutes; she bit her lip wondering if either Jenson or her Uncle could wait. Knowing that Jonathan was probably trying to sort out some kind of contract for Jolyon she sent him a text to give her a ring when he was free, and quickly headed in the direction of the other end of the factory.

‘The usual place’ as Jenson had put it was a large room filled with some of McLaren’s most famous Formula 1 cars, Seanagh still had no idea why they were kept at the factory when they had a perfectly good warehouse nearby and a completely full boulevard of cars already. But because it was in a quiet place in the factory it was a good place for people to go and talk in private, like Jenson and Seanagh had done prior to the launch of the 2014 car.

She hurried down staircases and corridors before finally arriving at the large silver double doors, one of which was ajar and Seanagh could just make out light creeping out under it. She quietly sneaked into the room and shut the door behind her, but the room appeared to be empty even though all the lights were on.

“Hello, Jense?” Jenson’s head popped up from behind a tyre near the back of the room, he leaned against the car he was sitting behind and smiled.

“Hello you” Jenson was smiling just like everyone else in the factory was. Seanagh carefully tiptoed her way through a whole host of historic McLarens before Jenson stood up and took Seanagh’s hand, directing her to a small gap between Jenson and Seanagh’s 2013 cars. They both sat down on the concrete floor. “I was beginning to wonder if you were turning up at all”

“I called home first, I wanted to tell them in case they heard it from elsewhere” Seanagh sighed and looked at Jenson. “So which team snapped you up then?” Jenson laughed and looked up at the ceiling. “Because you’re either retiring or leaving and so far nobody’s told me which one it is” She asked him sternly, if she was being honest Jenson was the last person she wanted to race against in another team. She couldn’t bare it to call him a rival.

“I’m… retiring” The words seemed to lift a weight of Jenson’s shoulders, as he just sat against his old car and grinned like a Cheshire cat.

“Bloody hell” Seanagh sighed. “I didn’t… I mean…”

“You thought I was going to stay and you were going to get fired?”

“Something like that” The two drivers stayed looking at each other, with Jenson edging closer after a little while. “If you don’t mind me asking…”

“I just want to have a life, trust me the past fifteen years hasn’t exactly been easy” Seanagh hummed and allowed Jenson to continue. “I’ve missed so much, and either that or my family have had to work around me just so I can still be at things, like my sister’s wedding last year for one and…” Jenson paused, and longingly looked at Seanagh and placed a hand on top of hers. “I want to have time for the other important people in my life” The pair smiled at each other, not really knowing what to say.

“I um…” Seanagh bit her bottom lip as she tried to string a sentence together in her head. “I have thought about Singapore, and what you said to me” Jenson nodded. “And uh… well…” Jenson’s face fell slightly; he almost looked as if he was preparing himself for a rejection. “Oh screw it” Instead of saying anything at all, Seanagh wrapped her arms round Jenson and kissed him. She could feel his lips curving into a smile as they kissed and he tightly wrapped his arms round her waist to stop her from falling.

“Dare I ask…” Jenson eventually asked after a few minutes, sounding breathless.  “Is that a yes?” Seanagh – far too happy to say anything – just nodded and brushed her thumb across the side of Jenson’s face.

“Only if you can put up with me and Bernie Ecclestone’s schedule though”

“Gladly” Jenson grinned, before going to kiss Seanagh again.


	67. In It Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Changing of fortunes in the Americas

_Sunday 25 th October – COTA, Texas_

“I don’t see what all the fuss is about to be honest” Jenson looked around the soaking wet paddock holding his umbrella as tight as he could. “This is just a light rain shower back home” Seanagh laughed and nearly stood in a large puddle.

“I suppose you don’t mind racing in it then?” The couple smiled at each other and tried to doge puddles in amongst the paddock regulars. Thankfully for everyone at the circuit the rain was supposed to ease off before the start of the race, but the drivers had to take part in the delayed qualifying session first. Jenson and Seanagh ran into the McLaren hospitality where Eric had seemed to be awaiting their arrival.

“Where on earth have you been?! You do understand there is a qualifying session this morning” Eric seemed to be scolding only Jenson, but unbeknownst to him both drivers were at fault for being late after sleeping in.

“Sorry boss, I’ll go get changed…” Jenson awkwardly slinked off to his driver room while Seanagh politely wished Eric a good morning and went over to sit with Richard and have breakfast.

 

The hours that followed the race felt longer than they were, at least for Mia. Despite managing to finish in eighth place, the drivers’ championship had already been decided and it wasn’t in Nico’s favour. Mia was heartbroken for him – it was clear from seeing him for all of two seconds in the press pen just how upset and disappointed he was.

Mia quietly entered Nico’s hotel room with the spare key he had given her and found her boyfriend sat cross-legged in the bed, his phone in one hand with the other propping up his chin.

“Hi” Mia spoke softly, Nico’s head slowly looked up at her and he just about managed a small smile.

“Hi” He threw his phone to the side and started drumming his fingers against his legs. “Dad called” Nico cleared his throat and ran a hand through his hair. “Says there’s always next year”

“He’s right” Mia moved from the doorframe she was leaning against and sat down on the bed opposite Nico.

“I suppose I should congratulate you on eighth” Nico’s voice cracked and he started to cry, Mia instantly wrapped her arms around him as tightly as she could, hoping that maybe if she hugged him hard enough all his sadness at being beaten would go away. Being a racing driver, she knew it wasn’t that simple. Mia kissed Nico’s hair and wiped away his tears and cupped his face in her hands.

“I know it won’t mean much right now… but I love you so, so much. And championship or not I am _always_ going to be so proud of you no matter what happens. There’s no way in hell I’m ever going to give up on you winning the title one day” Nico placed his hands on Mia’s and moved them so he could intertwine their fingers together. “I’m always going to be here for you Nico, wherever in the world we are”

“I know” Nico sniffled and smiled at the sight of their intertwined hands.

“And…” Mia paused, waiting for Nico to look up at her. “You’ve got three races left to show the whole damn world just how good you are”

“Starting next week right?” Nico properly smiled, making Mia smile too.

“Speaking of which, we’ve got a plane to catch”

 

_Sunday 1 st November – Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez _

“So…” Nico was walking with Mia towards the drivers parade in the bright Mexican sunshine. “Pole position”

“Ideal race conditions” Mia looked up at the clear blue sky and smiled.

“I’d say a win is on the cards” Nico smirked and turned to head towards his parade car. “Good luck for today” Nico winked at Mia who seemed to be beaming.

“You too”

 

Nico walked into the podium cool down room with a wide smile on his face, he had managed to fend Lewis off to take the win, and the fact that Lewis wasn’t looking pleased in the slightest seemed to give Nico an added comfort. Nico lifted up the winner’s sombrero that had taken the place of the Pirelli baseball caps and looked puzzled before seeing the number one stitched into the side. He grinned and proudly placed the sombrero on his head and offered a bright smile to the TV camera that had been trained on him ever since he walked into the room.

 

The post-race Amber Lounge party was as well attended as it usually was, drivers, celebrities, socialites and race-goers had already filled the nightclub, but Nico and Mia weren’t interested in mingling and wanted to celebrate only with each other.

They danced together and drank, not a lot but enough to put them in a good mood, and found themselves in one of their hotel rooms by the early hours of the morning. They both collapsed onto the king size bed and spent a few minutes just looking at each other with all the happiness in the world.

“Are you okay?” Nico asked as Mia began to fiddle with her hands, she just quietly hummed in response. “You sure?” Nico propped himself up on his elbow. Mia opened her moth but she didn’t know what to say so she stayed quiet.

“It’ll only just distract you after the good race you had…”

“Hey, your problems are just as important as mine. We’re in this together aren’t we?” Mia sighed and eventually sat up pulling her legs into her chest and resting her head on her knees.

“It’s my sponsors… they um…” Nico sat up as Mia tried to put a sentence together in her head. “Apparently they’ve been in financial trouble for a while… so they’re pulling out”

“Oh no…” Nico frowned and rubbed Mia’s shoulder.

“So I really need Renault to hurry up and buy Lotus, because that’s the only way I’m going to keep my seat since Lotus _really_ need the money and-” Mia’s voice cracked and she started crying, many months worth of stress and worry finally getting the better of her. Nico wrapped his arms rightly round Mia and hugged her long after she had stopped crying.

“Even if you aren’t kept on, I can speak to Toto and-”

“No” Mia replied sharply. “I know you want to help, and I really appreciate it but, it wouldn’t be right if you tried to work out a deal for me. It’s my career and I need to do things for myself okay?” Nico sighed and nodded. “Plus I don’t think my manager would be happy if I had someone else doing their job” Nico smiled and held one of Mia’s hands.

“Remember what you said to me in Austin?” Mia sniffled and nodded.

“Well, I feel the same way about you. We’re a team, if anything bad happens then we go through it together” Mia smiled as Nico kissed the back of her hand.

“Together”


	68. Ending and Beginning (Again)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The final race of the 2015 season

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well here we are, after nearly four years what I thought was going to be 'just a little story' is finally finished. I'll keep this short but I just want to thank all of you for reading, commenting and leaving kudos - it's meant so much to me that you've all enjoyed reading this as I have writing it.
> 
> So I hope you all enjoy this last chapter, and thank you <3

_Wednesday 25 th November – Dubai _

“I could not think of a better way to spend my last race” Jenson grinned at the sight of his family, friends and girlfriend all with him for one final pre-race weekend dinner. He was sat in between Seanagh and Mikey and opposite his Mum and sisters; everyone seemed to be relaxed and happy, as people usually did before the last race of another exhausting season. The table raised their glasses of (non-alcoholic) drinks and made a toast to Jenson and his hopefully happy retirement.

“You know I don’t know what’s more surprising” DC piped up after everyone had started on their main course. “The fact that Jenson discovered the meaning of the word retirement and decided to go through with it or that those two ended up together” The whole table laughed.

“Keep your jealousy to yourself please David” Jenson winked at his friend and kissed Seanagh’s cheek. After a long dinner the group checked out of their hotel rooms and found themselves waiting at the airport for their flight to Abu Dhabi.

“I feel like we might have left this flight a little late” Jenson yawned as Seanagh led them round duty free.

“We’ll be fine” Seanagh replied not really looking at anything on the shelf.

“Are you alright? You looked a bit worried at dinner” They stopped walking and Jenson moved so he was stood in front of Seanagh.

“What if DC opens his mouth and says anything before we do?” Jenson sighed and held Seanagh’s hands in his.

“I’ve sworn him to secrecy about fifty times over the past fortnight; I promise you it’ll all be fine”

“Don’t worry I won’t open my mouth and say anything either” Seanagh yelped and Jenson jumped at the sight and sound of Fernando sneaking up on them, he just stood looking at his team mates with a small smile on his face.

“For goodness sake Fernando sneaking up on people in duty free is a terrible idea why did you do that?!” Seanagh spoke quickly and scowled at the Spaniard.

“Sorry” He held up his hands and shrugged as an apology. “I meant what I said though, my mouth will remain firmly shut” Fernando had been the one to walk in on Jenson and Seanagh in the factory back in September, and after laughing about some kind of bet with Mark he had promise to keep quiet about their relationship (until he was allowed to gloat that he had known all along of course).

“Well there’s a first time for everything” Jenson rolled his eyes and Fernando responded with gently hitting him on the shoulder.

“I was actually going to say that our flight is boarding now” Fernando led the three of them out of duty free and towards the boarding gate where Jenson’s entourage had already formed a queue at.

Jenson and Seanagh had booked seats next to each other; Seanagh had been looking out of the window, already able to make out Abu Dhabi in the distance not long after take-off and was distracted by someone squeezing her hand.

“You okay?” Jenson had intertwined their fingers together and had a lazy smile on his face.

“Yeah… yeah I’m good” Jenson paused and continued to smile. “I haven’t felt this happy in a long time”

“I’m glad to hear it” The pair just smiled at each other and stayed talking and holding hands for the whole flight not even caring who saw.

 

_Thursday 26 th November – Yas Marina Circuit_

As expected Abu Dhabi was its usual baking hot self, Jenson and Fernando were both away either in the press conference or speaking to journalists leaving the rest of the team to pass the time until they could leave the track. Mikey made his way to the upstairs terrace and sat down at a free table and waited for Seanagh to join him a few minutes later.

“Hey, sorry I’m late I got caught up speaking to people. You said you had the plans for Sunday finalised?”

“Yeah I had a look round the paddock this morning before it got too busy…” Mikey pulled a few sheets of A4 paper out a small folder, one of which appeared to be a bird’s eye view drawing of a small section of the paddock where the McLaren hospitality was. “And the thing we talked about, should be fine” Mikey spoke quietly to make sure no one was listening. “And Fernando had a little idea of his own” Seanagh raised an eyebrow as Fernando appeared, him too clutching sheets of paper close to his chest. He smiled at Mikey and Seanagh before sitting down.

“I hope you don’t mind” Fernando placed the sheets of paper down on the table; they turned out to be a large pile of temporary tattoo sheets. “Something for everyone to wear on Sunday” Seanagh picked up a sheet and smiled, they were British flags in the shape of large coat buttons – just like Jenson’s real tattoo that he had on the crook of his arm.

“It’s perfect” Fernando and Mikey both smiled, the big send-off they had been planning for Jenson was finally coming into place.

 

_Sunday 29 th November_

“Yeah?” Jenson had just finished pulling on his fireproofs when someone knocked on the door of his driver room. “It’s open” Jenson turned to his overalls, and put them on for the very last time.

“Hi” Jenson spun round and nearly tripped over the overalls hanging at his ankles. “I can come back” Seanagh tried her best not to giggle but failed miserably. Jenson shook his head and managed to pull his overalls on and he let them hang at his hips.

“It’s alright, you can stay” Jenson leaned against the massage table in the corner and Seanagh happily joined him. Jenson pulled his girlfriend into a tight hug and was determined for the two of them to stay that way for as long as possible. He rested his chain against the top of her head and kissed her hair with a small smile.

“As much as I’d like to stay here, you’ve got a race in about half an hour”

“The last one…” Jenson trailed off with a sigh, he brushed his thumb against the temporary tattoo Seanagh had on the crook of her arm, everyone in the team was wearing them. Even Eric had been talked round. Seanagh nodded and moved Jenson’s hands so they were intertwined with hers.

“I’ll be so proud of you, even if the engine gives up…” Jenson chuckled.

“I hope not, if the engine’s up for it I was planning on going for the win today” They both laughed for a while and moved so they were stood side-by-side with their arms round each other, Seanagh was sat on the massage table so she could rest her head on Jenson’s shoulder. “It’s funny…”

“What is?” Seanagh lifted her head and looked at Jenson with a raised eyebrow.

“How much has changed, between us” Seanagh smiled and shook her head.

“You’re not wrong there” Seanagh sighed and remembered back to the previous year, when the room they were currently sat in had been filled with pictures of Seanagh’s time at McLaren, now it had been filled with pictures of Jenson’s memories. “I’m glad it did though” Seanagh smiled as Jenson moved so he was standing in front of her and planted a soft but deep kiss on her lips. Just then Mikey walked in and cleared his through, causing Jenson to jump a few feet from his girlfriend.

“It’s time” Seanagh jumped down off the massage table and squeezed his hand.

“Good luck” Seanagh went up on her toes and kissed Jenson, breathing a quiet ‘I love you’ against his skin. She smiled at Mikey before running down the stairs and went outside to take her place in the guard of honour that each and every team member was stood in, lining a path to the McLaren garage. After a few minutes Jenson and Mikey emerged and everyone greeted Jenson with applause, with watery eyes he hugged his Mum and sisters before thanking and shaking hands with every mechanic, engineer and team member he passed before he finally found himself in the garage for his very last race.

 

Everyone cheered as Jenson returned to the garage after the race, while he hadn’t brought home any points, twelfth place was still deemed perfectly respectable (not that anyone would have complained anyway). Jenson shook hands with every single one of his mechanics before his family charged forward and hugged him from all sides. Seanagh had been stood with them for the whole race, and they had all cried when Jenson crossed the finish line. Once his family had let Jenson go he made a bee line for Seanagh and in the spur of the moment kissed her in front of the whole garage, which seemed to stun a good number of mechanics into silence.

“Took you long enough!” One of Jenson’s sisters called out making everyone laugh, bringing noise back to the garage once more.

“I should go before I get you into more trouble” Jenson winked before leading a very confused Richard out of the garage.

 

“I can’t believe you weren’t going to tell me” Richard huffed as he sat down with Seanagh, Jenson and his family in the team hospitality. He (like what turned out to be a large number of people) seemed to be quite offended that neither Jenson or Seanagh had told him they had started seeing each other.

“I was going to tell you Rich…”

“When?” The press officer frowned and folded his arms.

“At the test on Tuesday”

“Ah well, it doesn’t matter because you both got caught by a TV crew in the garage…”

“WHAT?!” Jenson and Seanagh bother nearly fell from their seats, while Richard threw his head back in roaring laughter.

“That was _not_ funny” Seanagh shook her head and frowned, she looked briefly looked down at her phone showing a new message from Mia.

_I’m outside. Can you come see me? It’s important._

Sure enough when Seanagh looked out the window she saw Mia anxiously looking at her phone. Seanagh politely excused herself from the table and went to see her. “Hey”

“Hi!” Mia hugged her friend once she was in arms reach and started to bounce up and down on her toes.

“Everything okay?” Seanagh asked, Mia just stood grinning from ear to ear. She looked around the paddock, probably to check for any prying ears.

“Renault are going to buy Lotus” Seanagh gasped, realisation slowly dawning on her.

“So does that mean…”

“They’re going to keep me on, and Jo! Him and me are going to be team mates” Mia sounded and looked more relieved than she had done in months. “So you and me are racing each other again”

“I look forward to that, I’m so happy for you” Seanagh and Mia both smiled before they hugged each other, it seemed that at long last their careers had finally fallen into place.

“Thanks, look I need to go. Are you guys coming to Amber Lounge later?”

“Uh maybe, I’ll let you know” Jenson and his entourage all emerged from hospitality, Jenson was still wearing his overalls which he was very much intent on keeping.

“Hello Mia!” Jenson hugged the Scot and politely kissed her on the cheek. “It’s good to see you”

“I was just heading off but well done for today; I hope you enjoy your retirement”

“Oh I’m sure I will”

 

_Tuesday 1 st December _

Jenson felt so strange walking through the almost deserted paddock; the sun was shining bright for the sole post-season test day. He seemed to blend in wearing plain white t-shirt and shorts with dark sunglasses over his eyes, with a radio headset slung round his neck. As Jenson walked towards the McLaren garage Seb jogged over towards him and Jenson stopped to meet him.

“You alright Seb?” Jenson clapped the Ferrari driver on the shoulder.

“I’m good thank you, I’m sorry I couldn’t see you on Sunday”

“It’s alright”

“It’s a shame you won’t be racing next year, but I just wanted to wish you all the best” Seb reached out to shake Jenson’s hand, which he happily did.

“Thank you Seb, the same goes for you. Keep it exciting for me watching at home yeah?”

“I’ll try” Seb laughed and looked at his physio who was tapping his foot. “I need to go, see you around then?”

“See you Seb!” Jenson waved as Seb jogged back towards the Ferrari garage with his physio in tow. Jenson heard the faint sound of radio chatter from his headset and quickly went over to the McLaren garage and saw Seanagh getting into what was now her car. He walked over and squeezed one of Seanagh’s hands and kissed the top of her helmet before retreating back to the garage to watch her drive out onto the track.

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, so this is my first fic for this fandom, please comment to let me know if you like it (and if you want me to continue with it. I hope you enjoy reading it, I came up with the idea a while ago (and I'd like to thank on of my mates for helping me develop it).
> 
> So yeah, read, enjoy and comment if you like. Thank you!

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Change In Colour](https://archiveofourown.org/works/12228159) by [Livelongandfangirling](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Livelongandfangirling/pseuds/Livelongandfangirling)




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